ITC Rescinds Tariffs on Aluminum Extrusion Products

The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) on Oct. 30 issued a rare negative determination regarding countervailing and anti-dumping duties on imports of aluminum extrusions from China, Colombia, Ecuador, India, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, and Vietnam.

This is a victory for the residential construction industry as HVAC, refrigeration systems, lighting, railings, windows, doors and furniture products rely on aluminum extrusion.

The ITC decision means that countervailing and anti-dumping cases against these nations will be terminated and all duties collected by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection will be refunded to importers. NAHB was part of a coalition that sent a letter to the ITC opposing the overly broad scope of the investigation and the imposition of tariffs on aluminum extrusion from these nations.

A tariff is essentially a tax imposed on imported goods and services and as a result American businesses and consumers end up paying higher costs.

Once a tariff is imposed, the ITC rarely reaches a final negative determination that completely rescinds the tariffs. The ITC decision should mean that the U.S. industry producing aluminum extrusions was not materially injured by imported merchandise. The ITC has not yet issued a report containing the details of the basis for its decision.