WASHINGTON
,
May 20, 2024
/PRNewswire/ — The Coalition for Fair Trade in Shopping Bags (the “Coalition”) applauds the final determinations announced today by the United States Department of Commerce (“Commerce”) that imports of paper shopping bags into
the United States
from
Cambodia
,
China
,
Colombia
,
India
,
Malaysia
,
Portugal
,
Taiwan
, and
Vietnam
are being sold at less than fair value (commonly termed “dumping”) and that imports from
China
and
India
also are being subsidized. This follows an affirmative final finding of dumping announced in March with respect to imports of paper shopping bags from
Turkey
.
Commerce’s investigations concerning these nine countries cover paper shopping bags with handles of any type, whether printed or unprinted. Paper shopping bags, which often are used to carry items purchased from a retail establishment or restaurant, typically are made of kraft paper but can be made from any type of paper material.
In its final determinations, Commerce concluded that imports of paper shopping bags from each of the nine countries are being unfairly traded. In particular, Commerce found combined dumping margins and subsidy rates of up to 308.13 percent. This means that U.S. importers of paper shopping bags from these countries will have to pay cash deposits to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“Customs”) based on the value of their future imports. For example, where a particular supplier has a dumping/subsidy rate of 60%, for every
$100
of paper shopping bags imported from that supplier, importers will now have to begin paying
$60
to U.S. Customs as cash deposits for future dumping duty liability. An importer’s final liabilities – which could be higher or lower than the cash deposits paid at the time of importation – will not be known for some time, however, since the cash deposits are only estimates. This means that the final duty assessments can be amended during Commerce’s annual administrative reviews.
A summary of the country- and company-specific rates is available on Commerce’s
website
.
The International Trade Commission (“ITC”) already has determined that the U.S. industry is materially injured by reason of unfairly traded shopping bags imported from
Turkey
, and an antidumping duty order against
Turkey
was published on
May 9
. In mid-June, the ITC will vote on whether imports from
Cambodia
,
China
,
Colombia
,
India
,
Malaysia
,
Portugal
,
Taiwan
, and
Vietnam
have also caused injury. If the ITC reaches the same finding as it already has with respect to
Turkey
, Commerce will then issue additional antidumping and countervailing duty orders on
July 8
.
The Coalition is represented in these actions by the law firm King &Â Spalding LLP. “The domestic manufacturing plants and U.S. workers greatly appreciate the hard work undertaken by Department of Commerce officials to evaluate the extent of unfair pricing practices from these countries,” said
Mike Taylor
, a partner in the law firm of King & Spalding. “The dumping and subsidy findings validate the petitions that were filed last summer and should help restore fair competition to the U.S. market so that manufacturing plants and jobs can remain in
the United States
.”
The Coalition intends actively to continue monitoring imports for unfairly traded paper shopping bags from other countries, and the Coalition also plans actively to coordinate with U.S. Customs to ensure that importers fully comply with their obligations. The importation of paper shopping bags from these nine countries without the payment of antidumping and countervailing cash deposits and duties may result in severe civil or criminal penalties.
About King & Spalding
King & Spalding is an international law firm that represents a broad array of clients, including half of the Fortune Global 100, with 1,300 lawyers in 24 offices in
the United States
,
Europe
, the
Middle East
and
Asia
. The firm has handled matters in over 160 countries on six continents and consistently earns recognition for the results it obtains, uncompromising commitment to quality, and dedication to understanding the business and culture of its clients. More information is available at
www.kslaw.com
.
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SOURCE King & Spalding