Mexico Sugar: Preliminary Agreement Reached to Suspend Investigations as AD Cash Deposit Rates Take Effect
Mexican sugar exporters and the U.S. industry have reached a tentative deal to avoid antidumping and countervailing duties on sugar from Mexico, said the Commerce Department on Oct. 27. Under a preliminary agreement to suspend the ongoing antidumping and countervailing investigations, Mexican sugar exporters would limit the amount of sugar they ship to the U.S., and abide by minimum prices, said Commerce. The announcement came on the same day that Commerce reached its preliminary determination in the AD duty investigation, deciding to require AD duty cash deposits ranging from 39.54% to 47.26% (here). The agency set CV duty cash deposit requirements at 2.99% to 17.01% in September (see 14082919). If the suspension agreements are finalized, the U.S. will suspend its AD/CV duty investigations, end cash deposit requirements, and refund any cash deposits already collected.
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For now, AD duty cash deposit requirements will take effect on the date the preliminary determination is published in the Federal Register, which should be in a few days. In a normal AD or CV duty investigation, Commerce would then make its final determination some months later, and the International Trade Commission would follow shortly afterward with its final injury determination, currently due in April 2015. If the ITC finds injury, then Commerce would in turn issue AD/CV duty orders making duties permanent.
But if suspension agreements are finalized, the investigations would be effectively paused until further notice. While the investigations are suspended, no cash deposits would be required, and no AD/CV duties would be assessed. Under the preliminary agreement, Mexican exporters would be subject to a minimum free on board (FOB) price for refined sugar of $0.2357 per pound, and for all other sugar of $0.2075. The agreements would be reviewed every five years in normal sunset reviews. Commerce would be able to pick up the investigations where it left off should it find Mexican exporters are not meeting the terms of the deal.
The Sweetener Users Association, representing U.S. sugar importers, recently called for any suspension agreement to take effect only after the ITC reaches its final injury determination, presumably because a finding of no injury would obviate the need for any agreement at all. In its current form, the preliminary AD suspension agreement only specifies it would take effect on its “date of signature.” An attached request for comments by interested parties to the investigations says submissions are due Nov. 10. The earliest the agreements could take effect is Nov. 26, according to a Commerce fact sheet. Lawyers representing U.S. sugar producers, Mexican sugar exporters and the Mexican government did not immediately return requests for comment on when the agreement would take effect.
Email ITTNews@warren-news.com for a copy of the AD duty suspension agreement.