The US Commerce Department announced preliminary countervailing duties of 11-13% on a kind of steel pipe imported from China, Reuters reported. US Steel Corp and the United Steelworkers union had filed a petition in October for the imposition of duties to compensate for Chinese government subsidies on seamless carbon and alloy pipes used in industrial piping systems. The imposition of duties is likely to further strain US-China trade ties at a time of political tension; China announced that high-level military visits with the US would be delayed in response to Washington’s recent arms sale to Taiwan. The US imported US$382 million worth of the pipe covered by the new duties in 2008, up from US$130 million in 2007. Anti-dumping duties covering the same pipe are expected to be announced in April.
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