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Washington. The United States will impose dumping and anti-subsidy duties on glossy paper from Indonesia and China after the US International Trade Commission ruled that domestic makers may be harmed by low-cost imports.

The panel’s 6-0 vote on Friday came hours after a World Trade Organization decision that applying both sets of duties on China does not violate international trade rules.

China has called the duties protectionist, while US lawmakers and makers of steel, paper and textiles say they are crucial to countering what they call unfair trade practices.

“This decision by the ITC will help level the international playing field for our manufacturers and make it possible for our companies to sustain and create jobs,” said Representative Michael Michaud, Democrat of Maine, in a statement after the decision.

The ITC ruling is the final step needed to set tariffs on imports — valued at $260 million — of the glossy paper, which is used to print magazines and art books.

NewPage, Appleton Coated and a unit of Sappi sought the duties, citing China’s and Indonesia’s policies of debt forgiveness, cheap power and low-cost access to timber for domestic producers.

The dumping duties will reach as much as 135.83 percent for China and 20.13 percent for Indonesia, the US Commerce Department said last month. Countervailing duties to offset subsidies will be as much as 17.94 percent for Indonesia and 178.03 percent for China, the agency said.

The Commerce Department imposed preliminary duties in April and May, and paper importers have been depositing those duties pending action by the ITC.

The panel’s decision sets the stage for the tariff rates to take effect within days.

Gold East Paper (Jiangsu) must pay combined duties of 25.24 percent, the department said. Chinese companies not listed in the case face a 153.47 percent duty, according to the statement.

Asia Pulp & Paper, a unit of Indonesia’s Sinar Mas Group, must pay a 38 percent duty on its exports to the United States, according to a company statement.

“We are extremely disappointed in the commission’s decision,” said Terry Hunley, acting president for Asia Pulp & Paper in the United States. “We believe there are very strong grounds for appeal, and we will begin pursuing our appeal options immediately.”

China, which faces the most trade complaints worldwide, has criticized the US decision to impose dumping and countervailing duties on its imports.

The United States categorizes China as a non-market economy, which raises the anti-dumping duties its products face in the United States.

In its case at the WTO, China argued that the United States was punishing its products twice by imposing both sets of duties.

The WTO judges rejected 8 of 11 complaints by China against US duties on imports of steel pipes, some off-road tires and woven sacks in its decision, which was announced in Geneva, Switzerland, on Saturday.

“This was a major victory for the US,” said Alan Price, a lawyer in Washington who has represented Nucor in trade cases.


Bloomberg