US government has imposed duties on imports of steel pipe from South Korea, India, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey and Vietnam, in line with a preliminary determination.

The Commerce Department said that it had found that dumping of the steel pipe imports into the US harmed competition.

The Commerce Department set duties from 9.89% to 15.75% on Korean pipes. Duties ranging from 2.05% to 118.32% also were imposed on pipe from the other nations;

South Korean Hyundai Hysco Co - 15.75%

South Korean Nexteel Co - 9.89%

Other South Korean manufacturers - 12.82%

Thai WSP - 118.32%

Indian GVN Fuels Ltd - 2.05%

The duties must be paid on the imports immediately, though will be refunded if the US International Trade Commission determines that American producers weren’t harmed by the imports, a ruling scheduled in the coming months.

Although the investigation found pipe from Ukraine had also been sold in the United States below cost, Commerce said it would not collect any duties due to a suspension agreement.

This finding overturns a Commerce Department decision in February not to set anti dumping duties on the Korean imports.

US OCTG producers and unions including United Steel Workers & Alliance for American Manufacturing that had complained those countries were unfairly flooding the American market. In July 2013, domestic steel producers filed a trade case that is now pending at the US Department of Commerce. They claimed that “At a time of high demand for OCTG, the US industry is being squeezed by dumped imports from South Korea and other nations. Failing to fully enforce our trade laws puts American jobs on the line and risks outsourcing the benefits of America’s energy boom. Thousands of workers will be left vulnerable.”

1. OCTG imports doubled from 850,000 tons in 2010 to 1.8 million tons in 2012 a 113% increase.

2. Dumped OCTG imports from South Korea accounted for half of that amount.

3. Foreign imports are often sold at hundreds of dollars per ton less than domestic OCTG products.

4. Domestic industry operating margins fell from 13.6% to 9.8%.