The US Department of Commerce made a preliminary anti-subsidy ruling on Chinese aluminium exporters Tuesday, and the result of such action may force Chinese firms in the field to withdraw from the US market, according to media reports.

The department decided to impose a punitive tariff ranging from 6.18 percent to 137.65 percent on the metal imported from China.

The three companies, which the maximum value of 137.65 percent will be imposed upon, are: Liaoyang Zhongwang Aluminum Profile Co. Ltd, Miland Luck Ltd, and Dragonluxe Limited. And others like Guang Ya Aluminum, Guang Cheng Aluminum Co., LTD, will be imposed tariffs ranging from 6.18 percent to 10.37 percent.

An unnamed manager from an aluminium company said that 137.65 percent is enough to squeeze the Chinese aluminium firms out of the US market.

Ding Dan, vide head of the export office of the Guangdong Xingfa Aluminium Co., Ltd., said that its distributors in the US can only make profits of over 20 percent, and a tariff higher than 30 percent would be enough to keep Chinese producers out of the market.

"The US Department of Commerce held an investigation debate in June, to which the three aforementioned firms were summoned as mandatory respondents. But since the firms did not respond to the department's request, it (department) was given the right to impose as much as it thought to be right," the manager said.

The US had previously launched an anti-dumping investigation on the Chinese aluminium products, with preliminary ruling due this October 27. The final decision for the anti-subsidy ruling will come out on November 21.

According to data from the US, from 2007 to 2009, the aluminum extrusion profiles the US imported from China grew about 90 percent. In 2009, Chinese aluminum firms made up 20.1 percent of the market share in the US market.