The U.S. Cuts Dumping Duty on Shrimp Imports from Viet Nam

The US Department of Commerce (DoC) has announced the preliminary results of its administrative review (POR6) on anti-dumping duties for frozen shrimp imported from Viet Nam, according to the Viet Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

Accordingly, anti-dumping taxes levied on products from the Minh Phu and Nha Trang seafood companies were slashed to zero per cent. Camimex Co will enjoy a tax rate of 0.8 per cent while 31 other companies are taxed at 1.03 per cent.

Remaining exporters nationwide would still be subject to a general duty of 25.76 per cent.

The new rates would be applied to shrimp batches exported to the US between February 1, 2010 and January 31, 2011. This is the third consecutive time that Vietnamese enterprises received a tax reduction.

If preliminary results remain unchanged, Minh Phu Corp would be the only company to enjoy a sharp tax cut, from 1.15 per cent in POR5 to zero per cent in POR6.

The DoC also announced the POR6 for Thai and Chinese shrimp imports. Thai exporters enjoyed tax rates of 0.97 per cent to 1.98 per cent, while Chinese companies were subject to rates ranging between zero per cent and 112.81 per cent.

VASEP said shrimp would continue as the leading export product on the domestic seafood industry this year with an expected value of over US$2.5 billion.

In the first two months alone, shrimp exports reached about $250 million, up 3.2 per cent over the same period last year, with current signs indicating that exports were bouncing back across most markets.

The association added that shrimp and tra fish exportsdeclined by 36.3 per cent in Germany and 21.1 per cent in France.

Last year, domestic shrimp was exported to 91 markets with a total turnover of $2.4 billion, increasing 13.7 per cent over the previous year, according to VASEP. Japan remained the leading market, consuming over $600 million and representing a market share of 25.3 per cent.