Trailer trade case widens Trump’s options

Politico
by Ari Hawkins

TRAILER CASE ADVANCES: American trailer manufacturers have cleared the first hurdle in a trade case that could lead to new restrictions on imports of large truck trailers and certain parts from Canada, China and Mexico.

USITC voted Friday to continue the antidumping and countervailing duty investigations, finding a “reasonable indication” that the domestic industry is materially injured by imports of van-type trailers and related subassemblies from the three countries.

The American Trailer Manufacturers Coalition, which represents U.S. trailer manufacturers, argued in November that years of low-priced imports have undercut domestic producers and cost U.S. jobs. They alleged dumping margins ranging from around 200 percent to more than 1,000 percent.

“As we seek the imposition of strong AD/CVD duties on unfairly traded van trailer products, we are grateful for the ITC’s affirmative preliminary injury determination,” said Robert E. DeFrancesco III, counsel to the coalition, in a statement. “We look forward to continued progress in this investigation, which is essential to protect this critical American industry from further injury.”

The decision: The 3-0 preliminary ruling allows the case to move forward, clearing the way for the Commerce Department to investigate alleged dumping and subsidy practices tied to the imported trailer products.

That opens the door to new anti-dumping and countervailing duties that could ripple through the highly integrated North American automotive and commercial vehicle supply chain. It also follows a decision last year to advance trade investigations into chassis, the underlying metal frames used to support vehicles, and related parts from Mexico, Thailand and Vietnam.

Together, the actions add another complication as the Trump administration prepares for the start of the USMCA review in July. Officials from Canada and Mexico have repeatedly pushed for limited changes while seeking to preserve existing protections.

At the same time, the administration is seeking to lock down a tentative thaw in trade tensions with China ahead of an expected leaders summit in April.

What’s next: Commerce is expected to issue preliminary countervailing duty findings in June, followed by initial anti-dumping determinations in July, according to the trucking coalition.

Reminder: The group had previously asked the administration to include trailer products in tariffs Trump imposed on medium- and heavy-duty truck imports under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act last year, but that request was not taken up.

Trailer products were also excluded from Trump’s tariffs on imported automobiles and auto parts.