Vietnam sues US for imposing anti-dumping taxes

Sources from the WTO based in Geneva say Vietnam has brought a lawsuit to the WTO protesting against the US imposition of anti-dumping taxes on the country’s frozen shrimp.

On February 1, Vietnam sent a request to the US to reconsider its decision. The two sides now have 60 days to discuss the issue. If no agreement is reached, Vietnam will be free to ask the WTO to set up an arbitration committee.

This is the first time Vietnam has brought an action since it joined the WTO in January 2007.

A US representative said the US is considering the issue but has refused to provide details or make comments.

In November 2004, the US Department of Commerce made a final decision, saying Vietnam and China were dumping frozen shrimp in the US market. This agency distinguished China and Vietnam from other shrimp exporters because it viewed these two countries as ‘non-market economies’. The anti-dumping tax rates for Vietnamese shrimp exporters were fixed at 4.13 to 25.76 percent.

Another separate survey by the US Department of Commerce judged that shrimp exporters from Brazil, Ecuador, India, and Thailand were also dumping. Ecuador and Thailand later took legal proceedings to the WTO against this decision, accusing the US Department of Commerce of having used illegal methods in its investigations, namely to artificially inflate profit margins or to invent a profit margin where none was detected.

The US Department of Commerce plans to review its decisions to impose anti-dumping taxes on shrimp imports from Vietnam, China, India, and Thailand, but the American Shrimp Processors Association has requested that tariff protection not be lifted.

VietNamNet/VOV

Tags: anti-dumping taxes on Vietnam seafood exports, Vietnam seafood exports, Vietnam seafood sector