The U.S. Department of Commerce announced affirmative determinations in its antidumping and countervailing duty investigations of imports of wooden cabinets and vanities from China.
The investigation determined producers and exports from China have sold wooden cabinets and vanities at less than fair value in the U.S. at rates ranging from 4.37% to 262.18%, according to a news release. The Department of Commerce also determined producers and exporters from China received countervailable subsidies at rates ranging from 13.33% to 293.45%.
The Department of Commerce set the following final antidumping and countervailing duties: 269.91% for Dalian Meisen, 122.1% for Foremost, 13.33% for Ancientree, and 58.89% for all others. With the ruling, almost all Chinese manufacturers would face a combined antidumping and countervailing duties cash deposit rate of 59%.
The decision was applauded by the American Kitchen Cabinet Alliance (AKCA), an industry coalition that had alleged government-subsidized Chinese manufacturers and exporters used unfair trade practices. The AKCA, composed of more than 50 member companies across the United States, claimed manufacturers and exports were dumping products below market value in the United States and sought stiff antidumping and countervailing duties on imports, which include ready-to-assemble (RTA) units.
The American Coalition of Cabinet Distributors (ACCD), an alliance of companies that import and distribute RTA cabinets, had vigorously opposed the potential trade duties, claiming the filing by the AKCA could “wipe out” the RTA segment. The ACCD also claimed RTA products serve a narrow niche and posed no competitive threat to domestic suppliers of stock, custom, and semi-custom product lines.
The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) is currently scheduled to make its final injury determinations in April. If the ITC makes affirmative final injury determinations, the U.S. Department of Commerce will issue antidumping and countervailing duty orders. If the ITC makes negative final determinations of injury, the investigations will be terminated, and no orders will be issued.
