US raises anti-dumping duties on Vietnams frozen catfish fillets

The US Department of Commerce (DOC) has imposed anti-dumping duty of 2.39 USD per kilogramme on frozen tra fish fillets which were imported from Vietnam between August 1, 2015 and July 31, 2016 following its 13th administrative review (POR 13). 

The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) has voiced its objection to the DOC’s anti-dumping tax, saying that it goes contrary to the trend of  free trade and affects Vietnam-US bilateral trade relations.

According to the association, the DOC’s decision is based on a misreading of the facts and a departure from long-standing policy and practice in the antidumping reviews in calculating duty rates for mandatory and separate rates respondents.  

The DOC applied adverse fact available (AFA) and forced Go Dang Seafood Joint Stock Company (GODACO) to pay 2.39 USD per kilogramme in anti-dumping duty, saying that the company did not provide necessary information for the department.

In fact, the mandatory respondent, GODACO fully cooperated in the review and supplied all data and information requested by the DOC in a timely manner. The data was complete and accurate and reported in accordance with its US terms of sale and its normal business and production practices. 

In addition, DOC applied the AFA-based tax rate to calculate the average duty rates for separate rates respondents even when those companies provided full and timely documents as requested by the DOC.

VASEP and the relevant trade remedy bureaus of the Vietnamese Government are studying all options in addressing this unfair result and its legality under US law.

In the first six months of the year, the US was the largest importer of Vietnamese tra fish, occupying 22 percent of the market share. Along with the high anti-dumping duty, the US Farm Bill is also a barrier for Vietnamese tra fish export to this market.