ITC: Propane Cylinders From China, Thailand Injure Domestic Industry

The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) determined on July 17 that steel propane cylinders imported from China and Thailand materially injure a U.S. industry. All four of the participating commissioners were unanimous in their decision, with the fifth commissioner recused from the investigation. The Commission vote follows the U.S. Department of Commerce’s June determination that imports of steel propane cylinders from China and Thailand were dumped and imports from China were also subsidized.

These antidumping and countervailing duty investigations began on May 22, 2018, after Worthington Industries, Inc. and Manchester Tank and Equipment filed petitions against importers of steel propane cylinders from China, Taiwan and Thailand. The Commission’s vote concludes these investigations.

The U.S. Department of Commerce will now instruct U.S. Customs and Border Patrol to require U.S. importers of steel propane cylinders from China and Thailand to deposit antidumping duties at the time of importation, which are estimated as follows:

            China: 32-217 percent (combined)

            Thailand: 10.77 percent

The domestic producers intend to appeal Commerce’s antidumping determination for Thailand with the U.S. Court of International Trade, alleging that Commerce significantly understated the margin of Thai dumping due to errors in the process.

The full ITC report is expected by August 26, 2019 and will contain the views of the Commission and information developed during the investigations. For more information, view the ITC’s press release here or contact Samantha Rocci at srocci@rvia.org.