2/22/2010
HEADLINES
PERSPECTIVE: Is China Evading Tariffs on Fasteners and Threaded Rod?

A coalition of U.S. manufacturers claims to have “compelling evidence that certain companies subject to antidumping orders are costing the U.S. Treasury at least $84 million annually due to their deliberate evasion of the antidumping duties,” according to the Coalition for Enforcement of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Orders.

The coalition, which plans to present its information to member of Congress as well as the U.S. Department of Commerce, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, said hundred of jobs are “threatened by these ongoing schemes.”

The group claims that in some cases Chinese manufacturers are transshipping items by “shipping these products to the U.S. via third countries and then falsely designating it as the country of origin to evade the duties.”

In other cases, “an inconsequential modification is made to the product in third countries to avoid the duties.” And some companies are falsifying labels, according to the coalition.

The Coalition advocates several solutions: cash deposits on suspect subject merchandise at U.S. points of entry; stationing at least one Customs and Border Protection official at each major seaport and land border crossing; and incorporating specific enforcement language into the Customs Reauthorization Act.

Fasteners Being Transshipped?

Stainless steel fasteners could be part of the effort to evade tariffs, with Chinese firms reportedly using Malaysia to avoid European antidumping laws.

The European Anti-Fraud Office claims that millions of euros worth of China-made goods are being passed off as Malaysian by using the Port Klang Free Zone transshipment hub, where imported goods are transferred to another container and re-exported using the invoice of a Malaysian company. ©2010 GlobalFastenerNews.com