Circular Welded Pipe: Mechanical Tubing 'Base Shells' Not Covered by AD Duties, Commerce Says
Mechanical tubing base shells imported by Mando America are not subject to antidumping duties on circular welded non-alloy steel pipe from Mexico and South Korea (A-201-805/A-580-809), the Commerce Department said in a scope ruling issued Nov. 22.
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Imported as an input in automotive shock absorbers, the base shells imported by Mando are not intended to convey liquid or gases, but rather are to be sealed to contain pressurized hydraulic fluid. The base shells are produced to ASTM A-513 specification for electric resistance-welded mechanical tubing, rather than ASTM A-53 specification for standard pipe, and the outside diameter and wall thicknesses of the various base shells do not overlap with sizes for standard pipe under ASTM A-53 Schedules 10, 40 and 80.
The scopes of the AD duty orders on circular welded non-alloy steel pipe from Mexico and South Korea say they do not cover mechanical tubing, but do not further define the term. Commerce has established tests in previous scope rulings to determine whether a good qualifies as non-subject mechanical pipe.
In a scope ruling on pipe imported by Galvak, Commerce devised a three-step analysis. The first step is to compare the pipe at issue with the standard sizes of welded tube. “Tubes found to not have overlap with the outside diameters of ASTM A-53 schedule 10, 40, or 80 (including certain tolerances) standard pipes are determined to be outside the scope of the Orders,” Commerce said. Tubes that do overlap in size proceed to the second and third steps of the analysis.
For two of the three types of base shells imported by Mando America, Commerce found that, as they do not overlap in size with ASTM A-53 schedule 10, 40 or 80 pipe, the analysis ends at step one and the goods are not subject to the AD duty orders.
For a third type of base shell imported by the company, Commerce did not even get to step one because it qualifies for an exclusion from the AD duties resulting from the International Trade Commission’s injury determinations. The ITC did not find that the cold-drawn mechanical tubing injures the U.S. industry, so such products have always been excluded from AD duties. As the third type of base shell is cold-drawn and not welded, it is exempt from the AD duty orders, Commerce said.