US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announced last week the initiation of new antidumping duty (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) investigations to determine whether imports of uncoated groundwood paper from Canada are being dumped in the United States, and whether producers in Canada are receiving alleged unfair subsidies.

The investigations were initiated based on petitions filed by North Pacific Paper Company of Longview, Washington on August 9. The dumping margins alleged by the petitioner range from 23.45 to 54.97 percent.

In the AD investigation, the Commerce Department will determine whether imports of uncoated groundwood paper from Canada are being dumped in the US market at less than fair value. In the CVD investigation, the Commerce Department will determine whether Canadian producers of uncoated groundwood paper are receiving unfair government subsidies.

If the Commerce Department determines that uncoated groundwood paper from Canada is being dumped into the US market and/or receiving unfair government subsidies, and if the US International Trade Commission (ITC) determines that dumped and/or unfairly subsidized US imports of uncoated groundwood paper from Canada are causing injury to the US industry, the Commerce Department will impose duties on those imports in the amount of dumping and/or unfair subsidization found to exist.

In 2016, imports of uncoated groundwood paper from Canada were valued at an estimated $1.27 billion.

During the Commerce Department’s investigations into whether uncoated groundwood paper is being dumped and/or unfairly subsidized, the ITC will conduct its own investigations into whether the US industry and its workforce are being harmed by such imports. The ITC will make its preliminary determinations on or before September 25. If the ITC preliminary determines that there is injury or threat of injury, then the Commerce Department investigations will continue, with a preliminary CVD determination scheduled for November 2017 and a preliminary AD determination scheduled for January 2018, unless these deadlines are extended.

If the Commerce Department preliminary determines that dumping or unfair subsidization is occurring, then it will instruct US Customs and Border Protection to start collecting cash deposits from all US companies importing the subject uncoated groundwood paper from Canada.

Final determinations by the Commerce Department in these cases are scheduled for January 2018 for the CVD investigation, and April 2018 for the AD investigation, but those dates may be extended. If the Commerce Department finds that products are not being dumped or unfairly subsidized, or the US International Trade Commission finds in its final determinations there is no harm to the US industry, then the investigations will be terminated and no duties will be applied collected.

In other news, Ross also announced that the Department of Commerce postponed the final determinations in the antidumping duty (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) investigations of imports of softwood lumber from Canada until November 14, 2017.

In April and June 2017, Commerce published its preliminary determinations in the CVD and AD investigations of softwood lumber from Canada. The US International Trade Commissions (ITC) is conducting a parallel investigation to determine if the American producers have been harmed by the softwood lumber imports from Canada.

The extension of the deadline comes to facilitate a potential negotiated settlement of the cases.