HCMC – Vietnamese plywood products are facing a preliminary anti-dumping duty rate of nearly 195%, according to a recent determination announced by the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC).
Two mandatory respondents were assigned duty rates of 191.85% and 194.80%. Meanwhile, 50 other companies that qualified for a separate rate are subject to a duty of 193.32% that is also applied for all other Vietnamese exporters of plywood nationwide. The investigation period for this case was conducted from October 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025.
Parallel to the anti-dumping investigation, DOC is also conducting a countervailing duty investigation. If both tax categories are combined, the total duty rate imposed on Vietnamese goods reaches 208.88%.
According to the Trade Remedies Authority of Vietnam under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the case was initiated following a petition from the Coalition for Fair Trade in Hardwood Plywood. The products under investigation mainly fall under HS codes 4412 (plywood) and 9403 (certain components and wooden furniture). In addition to Vietnam, China and Indonesia are also being simultaneously investigated for both anti-dumping and countervailing duties.
The period of investigation for anti-dumping was determined to be from October 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025. According to data cited by the petitioners from the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), Vietnam’s export turnover of the investigated products to the U.S. reached US$401 million in 2022, decreased to US$186 million in 2023, and rose again to US$244 million in 2024.
Once the preliminary determination is published in the U.S. Federal Register (expected within the next few days), importers in the U.S. will be required to pay cash deposits equivalent to the preliminary duty rates during customs clearance. However, DOC has preliminarily determined that there was no “critical circumstances” or a surge in imports during the period of review (defined as an increase of 15% or more); therefore, retroactive duties will not be applied.
The final determination is expected to be issued within 135 days from the date the preliminary results are published. During this period, DOC will accept comments and rebuttals from interested parties, potentially holding hearings and conducting on-site verifications of Vietnamese enterprises.
