Brazil's Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade Thursday postponed until January a decision on the application or non-application of antidumping duties on imports of Chinese and Russian hot-rolled coil steel.
According to the ministry, it would apply the antidumping duties based on an investigation carried out by its technical unit, which found there was dumping and damage to the local industry. But steel end-users have asked the government not to apply the duties in an effort avoid an inflationary impact on products' final prices.
At a meeting Wednesday, "it was agreed that these industries should receive more time to demonstrate what they claim: that the suspension of [antidumping] duties serves the national interest, avoiding impacts on inflation," said a source close the matter. "A decision is expected January 20."
The petition for this investigation was filed by Brazilian steel producers ArcelorMittal, CSN and Gerdau. The investigation started in April 2016.
