Mexico initiates anti-dumping investigation on hot rolled steel imports from China

Steel NewsDate: 05-03-2025 by: Ngoc Cam

On March 3, 2025, the Mexican Ministry of Economy officially initiated an anti-dumping investigation on hot rolled steel imports from China

This move aims to protect Mexico’s domestic steel industry from the risk of unfair competition posed by low-priced imported goods.

Reason for initiating the investigation

The investigation was launched following a petition filed by Ternium México, S.A. de C.V., one of Mexico’s leading steel manufacturers. The company alleged that HRC imports from China are being sold at prices lower than their fair market value, causing material injury to the domestic industry. According to the petition, this dumping practice has placed significant pressure on local steel producers, necessitating government intervention to maintain fair competition.

The exporters under investigation include:

China: Major companies such as Ansteel Group, Baoshan Iron & Steel, Jiangsu Shagang Group, among others.

Scope and objectives of the investigation

According to the Mexican Ministry of Economy, the investigation covers hot rolled steel, including flat steel products made of iron or carbon steel, whether pickled or unpickled and uncoated, with a maximum thickness of 25.4mm.

The relevant tariff codes fall under HS 7208.10.03; 7208.25.02; 7208.26.01; 7208.27.01; 7208.36.01; 7208.37.01; 7208.38.01; 7208.39.01; 7208.40.02; 7208.51.04; 7208.52.01; 7208.53.01; 7208.54.01, 7208.90.99; 7211.13.01; 7211.14.91; 7211.19.99; 7225.30.91; 7225.40.91; and 7226.91.07 of the Mexican HTS.

The dumping investigation period is set from September 1, 2023, to August 31, 2024, while the injury analysis period spans from September 1, 2019, to August 31, 2024. The primary objective of the investigation is to determine whether imported steel from China poses a threat of material injury to Mexican domestic steel industry.

The relevant tariff codes for the investigation include HS 7208 and 7211 under the Mexican HTS

Since China are classified as non-market economies (NME) by Mexico, the Ministry of Economy has applied the surrogate country methodology to determine the normal value of the imported steel. Specifically, Brazil has been chosen as the reference country, meaning that the price of hot rolled steel in Brazil will be used as a benchmark to compare with the export prices from China. If the export prices are significantly lower than those in Brazil, this may serve as evidence of dumping.

Hoa Phat exported 8,000 tons of rebar to Mexico in 2022