US delays decision on Vietnam shrimp duty
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The US International Trade Administration under the US Department of Commerce has announced that it will delay until May 28 a preliminary decision on whether to impose countervailing duties on frozen warm-water shrimp imports from Vietnam.
Originally, the Department planned to issue the preliminary decision on March 25 after the US International Trade Commission confirmed that the US shrimp industry had suffered significant losses due to subsidised shrimp imports.
However, on February 8, the petitioner asked the Department to extend the preliminary decision as they believe the normal period of 65 days was insufficient for an investigation.
The final decision on whether the shrimp sector is subsidised by the Vietnamese government will be issued no later than 75 days after the date of the preliminary decision, which is expected on August 11.
On December 28 last year, the US-based Coalition of Gulf Shrimp Industries filed a lawsuit with the Department requesting that countervailing duties be imposed on shrimp imported from seven countries, including Vietnam.
Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai has asked Vietnamese relevant agencies to deal with the case and noted that all of Vietnam’s support policies and incentives for the shrimp industry had been in strict accordance with WTO regulations.
The US is the second largest customer for shrimp from Vietnam.
