The U.S. Commerce Department to Set Duties on Wood Flooring, Steel Cylinders From China

The U.S. Commerce Department will announce on Oct. 12, 2011 the level of duties it plans to impose on imports of wood flooring and high-pressure steel cylinders from China.

Commerce will set final rates on imports of multilayered flooring, having already made preliminary plans to impose antidumping duties of up to 83% and countervailing duties of up to 27%. Antidumping remedies target goods that are being sold below fair value, while countervailing duties retaliate for unfair government subsidies.

Multilayered wood flooring imports from China fell to $120 million in 2009 from $148 million the previous year.

The flooring case has pitted U.S. producers against local distributors who benefit from the imports. Eight U.S. flooring makers sought relief from Chinese floor imports last October, claiming the imports were being unfairly subsidized and dumped, or sold below fair value.

Shaw Industries, a unit of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRKA, BRKB), formed the ad hoc Coalition for American Hardwood Parity, along with Anderson Hardwood Floors, Award Hardwood Floors, Baker's Creek, From the Forest, Howell Hardwood Flooring, Mannington Mills, and Nydree Flooring.

Commerce will also make its first determination of countervailing duty rates for imports of high-pressure steel cylinders, which grew to $49 million last year from $29 million in 2009. The petitioner, Texas-based Norris Cylinder Co., also claims that Chinese companies are selling the goods at less than normal value, seeking antidumping duties of up to 176%.

Before the duties can take effect, the International Trade Commission would have to find that U.S. producers are being harmed by the imports.