Mexican Dumping Forced TRQ Countries Out of the Market, Say Duty Proponents
The American Sugar Coalition (ASC) remains confident the International Trade Commission will find injury to U.S. industry and allow antidumping and countervailing duty investigations on Mexican sugar to go forward, following initiation of investigation in mid-April, according to a coalition spokesman. The spokesman hit back at a series of allegations made by sugar importers at a National Foreign Trade Counsel roundtable on April 28 (see 14042835). Despite increases in U.S. market share during the 2011-2013 period under investigation, Mexican market share skyrocketed due to systematic dumping, said the spokesman.
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“Mexico’s market share doubled from 9 to 18 percent during the investigation period. The “x” factor here is Mexico and the rapid increase of exports from Mexico. And from the first six months of this year, Mexico also appears to be rapidly accelerating exports,” said a coalition spokesman in an April 29 interview. “The last fiscal year Mexico sent 2.1 million tons of sugar. They are on pace to send 2.3 million tons of sugar this fiscal year. To us that clearly shows injury will continue to result through dumping.”
The sugar importers opposed to the duties argued tariff rate quota (TRQ) holders did not export sugar into the U.S. market at full capacity during the period under investigation because of poor production. But in an April 23 letter to the ITC, International Sugar Trade Coalition President Paul Ryberg argued that Mexican dumping forced TRQ sugar out of the market. During the investigation period, “imports under the raw and refined TRQs fell by 778,875 [metric tons],” said Ryberg in the letter. Those that oppose the investigation “ignore the role that USDA played in decreasing TRQ imports in 2012-13 in attempting to mitigate the surging imports from Mexico.” The letter was an official statement submitted in response to the initial ITC injury hearing on April 18. The International Sugar Trade Coalition is comprised of roughly half of TRQ countries, including Barbados, Belize, the Dominican Republic, Fiji, Guyana, Jamaica, Malawi, Mauritius, Panama, the Philippines, Swaziland and Zimbabwe.
The U.S. Agriculture Department asked TRQ countries to limit sugar exports after Mexican dumping collapsed the market, said the ASC spokesman. USDA was unreachable for comment. “What the USDA does is try to keep the market in balance where supply meets demand. Mexico exploited the right of free market access and dumped sugar into the U.S. market,” the ASC spokesman said. “We have asked to let the process play out. We are very confident. It is very clear to us that Mexico is dumping. Mexican industry is less inefficient that U.S. industry, so their increased market share must be a result of unfair trade practice.” The ITC will deliver a preliminary decision on May 12. Email ITTNews@warren-news.com for a copy of the letter. -- Brian Dabbs