New Trade Case on Imports of Seamless Refined Copper Pipe and Tube from Vietnam

A new U.S. antidumping (“AD”) petition was filed on June 30, 2020, by the American Copper Tube Coalition (“Coalition”) against imports of seamless refined copper pipe and tube from Vietnam.

The merchandise covered by this Petition includes seamless refined copper pipe and tube (“SRC tube”). SRC tubes are generally used for fluids under pressure, either for conveyance or in a closed loop for thermal transfer. Conveyance applications include household, commercial, institutional, industrial, and municipal water applications, as well as distribution systems for other liquids and gases. Thermal transfer applications for SRC tube include household, commercial, institutional, and industrial heating systems, commercial refrigeration systems (such as grocery store refrigerated cases) and combined or split-unit air conditioning systems of all sizes. This merchandise is identical to the merchandise currently subject to antidumping duty orders on imports from China and Mexico. Please see the scope section below for a full review of the subject merchandise.

The petition includes an AD (less than fair value) allegation against Vietnam. The Department of Commerce (“DOC”) and the International Trade Commission (“ITC”) will conduct the investigation. Within the next 45 days, the ITC will determine if there is a reasonable indication that the imports are injuring the U.S. industry. If the ITC finds that standard is met, then the cases will move to the DOC which will calculate the preliminary AD duty margin.

The DOC’s preliminary determination is currently scheduled for December 7, 2020, which is the date when importers will be required to deposit the calculated duties upon the products’ entry in the U.S. market.

There are strict statutory deadlines associated with these proceedings and affected companies are advised to prepare as soon as possible. If this product is of interest to you, please let us know so that we can provide you with additional information as it becomes available.

The following are key facts about this trade case:

Petitioners: American Copper Tube Coalition- Members of the Coalition include Mueller Copper Tube Products, Inc., Mueller Copper Tube West Co., Mueller Copper Tube Company, Inc., Howell Metal Company, and Linesets, Inc., (collectively, “Mueller Group”) and Cerro Flow Products, LLC (“Cerro”)

Foreign Producers/Exporters and US Importers: Please contact us for a listing of individual companies named in the petition.

AD margin: Petitioner has alleged the following AD margin:

• Vietnam: calculated AD margin of 110.51 percent

Merchandise covered by the scope of the case:

The products covered by the petition are all seamless circular refined copper pipes and tubes, including redraw hollows, greater than or equal to 6 inches (152.4 mm) in length and measuring less than 12.130 inches (308.102 mm) (actual) in outside diameter (“OD”), regardless of wall thickness, bore (e.g., smooth, enhanced with inner grooves or ridges), manufacturing process (e.g., hot finished, cold-drawn, annealed), outer surface (e.g., plain or enhanced with grooves, ridges, fins, or gills), end finish (e.g., plain end, swaged end, flared end, expanded end, crimped end, threaded), coating (e.g., plastic, paint), insulation, attachments (e.g., plain, capped, plugged with compression or other fitting), or physical configuration (e.g., straight, coiled, bent, wound on spools).

The scope of the petition covers, but is not limited to, seamless refined copper pipe and tube produced or comparable to the American Society for Testing and Materials (“ASTM”) ASTM-B42, ASTM-B68, ASTM-B75, ASTMB88, ASTM-B88M, ASTM-B188, ASTM-B251, ASTM-B251M, ASTMB280, ASTM-B302, ASTM-B306, ASTM-B359, ASTM-B743, ASTMB819, and ASTM-B903 specifications and meeting the physical parameters described therein.

Also included within the scope of the petition are all sets of covered products, including "line sets" of seamless refined copper tubes (with or without fittings or insulation) suitable for connecting an outdoor air conditioner or heat pump to an indoor evaporator unit. The phrase “all sets of covered products” denotes any combination of items put up for sale that is comprised of merchandise subject to the scope.

“Refined copper” is defined as: (1) metal containing at least 99.85 percent by weight of copper; or (2) metal containing at least 97.5 percent by weight of copper, provided that the content by weight of any other element does not exceed the following limits:

Element	Limiting Content by Weight
Ag-Silver	0.25
As-Arsenic	0.5
Cd-Cadmium	1.3.9
Cr-Chromium	1.4
Mg-Magnesium	0.8
Pb-Lead	1.5
S-Sulfur	0.7
Sn-Tin	0.8
Te-Tellurium	0.8
Zn-Zinc	1.0
Zr-Zirconium	0.3
Other elements (each)	0.3

Excluded from the scope of the petition are all seamless circular hollows of refined copper less than 12 inches in length whose OD (actual) exceeds its length.

The products subject to the petition are currently classifiable under subheading 7411.10.1030 and 7411.10.1090 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (“HTSUS”). Products subject to the petition may also enter under HTSUS subheadings 7407.10.1500, 7419.99.5050, 8415.90.8065, and 8415.90.8085. Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the scope of the petition is dispositive.

If you have any questions regarding the content of this alert, please contact Mark Ludwikowski (mludwikowski@clarkhill.com; 202-640-6680), Kevin Williams (kwilliams@clarkhill.com; 312-985-5907); William Sjoberg (wsjoberg@clarkhill.com; 202-772-0924), Courtney Gayle Taylor (cgtaylor@clarkhill.com; 202-552-2350); or another member of Clark Hill's International Trade Business Unit.