Japan challenges Turkiye's HRC anti-dumping probe findings

• JISF chairman calls decision "inappropriate", "very regrettable"
  
  
• AD duties levied after Turkiye receives 3.38 mnt of HRC imports
  
  

Mysteel: Japan has responded angrily to the decision of Turkiye's Ministry of Trade earlier this month to impose anti-dumping (AD) duties on imports of hot-rolled coil (HRC) originating from several countries, including Japan, describing the decision as inappropriate and very regrettable.

Turkiye's trade ministry announced on 11 October that HRC imports from China, India, Russia, and Japan had damaged its domestic industry. It imposed AD duties in the range of 6.1-43.31% of the CIF value in addition to the current 13-15% tax, with immediate effect for five years, as reported by Mysteel Global.

In its formal response issued nearly two weeks later on 22 October, the Japan Iron and Steel Federation (JISF) challenged the finding, saying that "during the anti-dumping investigation, the Japanese steel industry claimed that exports of Hot Rolled Flat Steel from Japan have caused no injury to the domestic industry in Turkey."

In the statement, JISF chairman (and Nippon Steel president) Tadashi Imai said, "It is inappropriate and very regrettable that the Ministry of Trade of Turkey has rejected our statements and concluded that the domestic industry in Turkey has been injured by imports (of HRC) from Japan."

On 7 August, the Turkish trade ministry had released its preliminary investigation results and decided to impose provisional AD duties of 39.12% against Japan, 20.56-57.75% against China, 11.65-18.26% against India, and 16.11-23.58% against Russia, though these were subsequently reduced in the final finding to 9% against Japan, 15.42-43.31% against China, 6.1-9% against India, and 6.1-9% against Russia.

"The Japanese steel industry will carefully study this decision and determine a proper course of action," Imai said in the statement. Why the JISF's response was so delayed remains unclear.

During 2023, Turkiye's HRC imports from the four countries totalled 3.38 million tonnes (mnt), with 1.94 mnt from China, 716,000 tonnes (t) from Russia, 624,000 t from Japan, and 64,000 t from India, according to Japanese reports.

Note: This article has been written in accordance with a content exchange agreement between Mysteel Global and BigMint.