Under the 13th administrative review (POR 13) released recently, the United States Department of Commerce (DOC) decided to impose anti-dumping duty of US$2.39-7.74 per kilogram on frozen pangasius fillets which were imported from Vietnam between August 1, 2015 and July 31, 2016, saying that the Vietnamese products were shipped to the United States at too cheap prices.
Vietnam's pangasius fillets to the United States suffer high tax rate of $2.39-7.74 per kilogram.
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There are nine Vietnamese enterprises with a separate rate at $3.87 per kilogram.
Local pangasius fish exporters said the anti-dumping duty for the two companies at $7.74 per kilogram is the highest tax rate ever before for Vietnamese pangasius fillets exported to the United States.
The tax rate at $7.74 is 3.2 times higher than that of the United States in the preliminary decision of POR13 issued in September 2017 and 9.7 times higher than the rate at POR12.
It will have negative impacts on Vietnam's fish exports to the United States, MoIT said.
The ministry has been closely working with the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) and local pangasius exporters to exchange information and give the US authorities feedback on the issue.
Throughout the review process, Vietnamese producers have put many efforts to provide the DOC with accurate information but the DOC decided to use adverse facts available (AFA) to determine the final tax rates. The DOC has changed its reviewing practices when applying AFA on many Vietnamese businesses, the ministry stressed.
Thereby, the MoIT requested the US to review the decision and reduce the tax rates on Vietnam's exporters in compliance with WTO regulations and with fairness for all related parties.
The ministry will continue coordinating with VASEP and relevant governmental agencies to study all options in ensuring legitimate rights of Vietnamese companies.
According to a report of the Directorate of Fisheries of Vietnam, the country's pangasius fish output hit 1.2 million tons in 2017, a year-on-year rise of 5.1 percent. In the year, export turnover of this kind of fish reached $1.78 billion, up 4.3 percent against that of the previous year, accounting for 21 percent of the fishery industry's total export value.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has set a target of earning $2 billion from catfish export this year, accounting for 31.5 percent of the fishery industry's export turnover in 2018.
To meet the target this year, the domestic fishery industry will improve the quality of fish bleedings besides enlarging export markets for catfish products.
Meanwhile, farmers need to team up with catfish processing companies to ensure a balance between supply and demand.
According to Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), the total export value of Vietnam's catfish in January reached $172.5 million, a year-on-year increase of 43.7 percent.
In January 2018, catfish exports to mainland China, Hong Kong and ASEAN increased sharply, while exports to the EU market continued to decline.
The export value of catfish to mainland China and Hong Kong increased 132 percent over the same period in 2017 to $41 million, becoming the largest export market for Vietnamese catfish products.
With the high export value, ASEAN surpassed the EU to become Vietnam's third largest export market. This year, ASEAN is expected to retain this important position.
