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Commerce sets preliminary dumping duty on Vietnamese PTMEG

Commerce sets preliminary dumping duty on Vietnamese PTMEG

Rule Changes

Hyosung Dong Nai and Vietnam's all-others entity face a 36.55% cash deposit; the final ruling is due in late March 2027

Today: Vietnam ruling published, cash deposits begin

Overview

Updated 56 minutes ago

Starting November 10, every US entry of Vietnamese polytetramethylene ether glycol carries a 36.55% cash deposit. PTMEG is the polymer that becomes spandex fiber and polyurethane elastomers, so the deposit lands on an industrial input, not a finished consumer good. The preliminary dumping finding names Hyosung Dong Nai Company Limited, the only producer listed in the notice, and applies the same rate to any Vietnamese exporter that has not qualified for one of its own.

Commerce reached that number without looking at Vietnamese prices. US law treats Vietnam as a non-market economy, so the agency rebuilt Hyosung's costs from surrogate-country data instead of the company's own books, a method that gives the agency wide latitude and exporters little to contest. The deposit stays in place until a final determination, now due in late March 2027 after Hyosung asked for more time.

Why it matters

PTMEG becomes spandex and urethane, so a 36.55% deposit raises the landed cost of Vietnamese fiber inputs for at least the next year.

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Key Indicators

36.55%
Preliminary Vietnam dumping margin
Assigned to Hyosung Dong Nai and to the Vietnam-wide entity alike.
25.32%
Korea PTG preliminary margin
The rate Commerce set for Korea's named respondent in the same four-country case.
49.79%
BASF Korea preliminary margin
Set on facts available with adverse inferences, meaning Commerce did not use the company's own data.
4
Countries covered by the case
China, Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam were all named in the November 6 announcement.
6 months
Provisional measures window
Extended from four months at Hyosung's request, the outer limit allowed by regulation.

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Organizations Involved

U.S. Department of Commerce
U.S. Department of Commerce
Federal Agency
Issued the preliminary determination and ordered cash deposits

The department that calculates dumping margins for imports and directs Customs to collect them.
US International Trade Commission
US International Trade Commission
Federal Agency
Running a parallel injury investigation

The agency that decides whether dumped imports are hurting US producers, a separate test from dumping itself.
HD
Hyosung Dong Nai Company Limited
Chemical manufacturer
Preliminary dumping margin of 36.55%

The only Vietnamese PTMEG producer named in the notice, and the sole respondent to receive a company-specific rate.
KL
Korea PTG Co., Ltd.
Chemical manufacturer
Preliminary dumping margin of 25.32%

The Korean respondent whose 25.32% rate became the all-others figure for Korea.
CL
BASF Company Ltd.
Chemical manufacturer
Preliminary dumping margin of 49.79% on adverse facts available

The Korean arm of BASF, hit with the highest published rate in the case after Commerce declined to rely on its data.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Federal Agency
Collecting the 36.55% cash deposit on Vietnamese entries

The border agency that collects cash deposits and suspends liquidation of covered entries.

Timeline

April 2026 March 2027

8 events Latest: Today
Tap a bar to jump to that date

  1. Final Vietnam determination due

    Upcoming Scheduled

    Commerce must issue its final ruling within 135 days of the November 10 publication.

  2. Vietnam ruling published, cash deposits begin

    Today Ruling

    The Federal Register notice sets 36.55% for Hyosung Dong Nai and the Vietnam-wide entity and starts suspension of liquidation.

  3. Commerce announces preliminary duties on four countries

    Ruling

    Korea PTG gets 25.32%, BASF Korea 49.79% on adverse facts, and Vietnam 36.55% for all exporters.

  4. Hyosung seeks longer provisional period

    Filing

    Hyosung Dong Nai asks Commerce to postpone the final ruling and extend provisional measures to six months.

  5. Preliminary deadlines pushed to November 4

    Procedural

    Commerce adds 50 days to the preliminary schedule, citing no compelling reason to deny the request.

  6. Petitioner asks for more time

    Procedural

    The petitioner requests a delay so Commerce can review initial questionnaire responses and issue follow-ups.

  7. Commerce launches dumping investigations

    Investigation

    The initiation notice formally opens less-than-fair-value cases against PTMEG from all four suppliers.

  8. Trade commission opens injury investigations

    Investigation

    The ITC institutes injury investigations for PTMEG from China, Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam and sets its preliminary schedule.

Scenarios

1

Final ruling keeps the Vietnam rate near 36.55%

Likely Resolves by Mar 29, 2027

Discussed by: Commerce's own Federal Register notice, which sets the 135-day final-determination clock and states that no compelling reason exists to deny Hyosung's postponement

Commerce rarely moves a preliminary margin by tens of points without new verified data, and in a non-market economy case the surrogate-cost calculation tends to hold. If the final determination lands at or above 30%, the cash deposit becomes a duty order that lasts at least five years, with annual reviews as the only route to a lower rate. Hyosung's postponement request bought time to file case briefs, not a different methodology.

2

Final margin falls sharply after Hyosung's case brief

Possible Resolves by Mar 29, 2027

Discussed by: Hyosung's October 21 postponement request, which extended the window for additional submissions and any verification before the final ruling

The gap between preliminary and final margins is where most of the arguing happens in a dumping case. If Hyosung persuades Commerce that the surrogate values or the currency conversion were wrong, the rate can fall by double digits. A final margin under 20% would still mean duties, but at roughly half the deposit importers now pay, which changes contract pricing for US buyers.

3

Trade commission finds no injury and the deposits are refunded

Unlikely Resolves by May 13, 2027

Discussed by: The ITC's statutory timeline, which requires an injury vote within 45 days of Commerce's final determination

Dumping alone does not create a duty. The ITC must also find that Vietnamese PTMEG materially injures or threatens US producers, and it has rejected petitions before when the domestic industry was healthy or the imported volume was small. A negative vote ends the case, releases the suspended entries and returns the cash deposits. Importers who posted 36.55% for months would get the money back without interest on price effects already absorbed.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

2004

US antidumping duties on Vietnamese shrimp (2004)

US shrimp processors petitioned for dumping duties on frozen shrimp from Vietnam and five other countries. Commerce treated Vietnam as a non-market economy and built margins from surrogate costs rather than Vietnamese prices, producing rates that varied widely by exporter.

Then

Duties took effect and Vietnamese exporters posted cash deposits on most US shipments.

Now

The case became the template for applying US trade remedies to Vietnamese manufacturers, and the duties survived years of administrative reviews.

Why this matters now

It established how Commerce values Vietnamese producers, from a substitute country's costs rather than their own books. The PTMEG margin rests on that same method.

1983

US tariff on large Japanese motorcycles (1983)

Harley-Davidson, losing ground to Japanese makers, won a five-year tariff on imported motorcycles above 700cc. The duty started near 45% and stepped down each year until it expired.

Then

Harley raised prices, cut costs and recovered US market share within two years.

Now

The tariff lapsed on schedule in 1988 and became the standard example of a temporary import barrier reviving a domestic manufacturer.

Why this matters now

It shows how a percentage duty reprices an entire supply chain, and how a fixed expiration date shapes what companies do while it lasts.

Sources

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Federal Register International Trade Administration Law360 MLex Global Economic Federal Register Federal Register