USA: order to review a sanction against biodiesel from Argentina

Argentina had in the US Its main market for this product with sales of 1.5 million tons valued at 1300 million dollars until it closed.
Thursday, September 12, 2019

In 2016, due to a complaint from US biodiesel producers. grouped in the National Biodiesel Board (NBB), the Donald Trump administration initiated an investigation against the product of Argentina that resulted in the imposition of average tariffs of 72% anti-subsidies and 74% anti-dumping. All that set of sanctions left biodiesel out of that market.

The North American producers argued that the existence of retentions in Argentina allowed the industry to buy cheaper soybean oil, biodiesel input, and then sell without export duties. Strictly speaking, USA claimed and Argentina was raising the retention to biofuel up to 15%. To this he added the scheme of $ 4 per dollar in force since last year.

Last July, USA He considered that circumstances had changed in Argentina with the increase in withholdings, something he requested, and he agreed to lower the anti-subsidy tariffs from 72% to a level of 0 to 10% according to the companies.
Despite this gesture, the anti-dumping duties remain. Regarding the latter, according to the Foreign Ministry, the US International Trade Court – it is worth remembering that the local industry filed a lawsuit in that country – sent for its review to the Department of Commerce of that country "certain central aspects of the anti-dumping investigation ".

"The decision of the Court coincides with the position held by our country in the sense that the anti-dumping order of the Department of Commerce is not consistent with the US legislation itself on the matter," said the diplomatic portfolio.

According to the Foreign Ministry, the process before the International Trade Court continues, but the known decision "constitutes a very important step to demonstrate that national biodiesel exports do not constitute unfair trade practices."
When asked, a business source indicated that the decision is "good news, although it does not mean the opening of the market since there will surely be a period in which the US Department of Commerce will appeal."

"It is a good first step that reaffirms the Argentine claim for which we were unfairly put in place and that we do not engage in illegal trade practices," he added.

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