Vietnam’s tra fish exporters can still access the US market despite the US Department of Commerce (DOC)’s imposition of high anti-dumping duties on Vietnamese tra fish, said Secretary General of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) Truong Dinh Hoe.

Hoe explained that Vietnamese businesses have brought the case to the US Commerce Court, which will review the DOC’s tax imposition and may ask the department to adjust the rate.  

This is not the first time Vietnam has filed a lawsuit against the DOC, he said, noting that in previous cases, the court had required the DOC to reduce duties levied on Vietnamese products. 

“Therefore, we believe that the case would end with a similar result, which mean the DOC will have to re-calculate the tax rate” the official said. 

Therefore, the door to the US market is still open for Vietnamese tra exporters, according to Hoe. 

According to the final results of the DOC’s 13th administrative review (POR13) of anti-dumping duties on Vietnamese Tra fish (pangasius) exported to the US from August 1, 2015 through July 31, 2016, Godaco Seafood JSC, which was selected as the only mandatory respondent during the POR13, was imposed a tax rate of 3.87 USD per kg, 5.61 times higher than 0.60 USD of POR12, and the highest ever level. 

The tax rate is irrational and unfair as the DOC did not fully consider the information provided by Godaco but instead applied adverse factors available (AFA) to determine the duty margin, Hoe said. 

He went on to say that in the context of the return of protectionism, in order to maintain their share in the world market, the first requirement for Vietnamese businesses is product quality. 

It is necessary to lower prices of Vietnamese tra and basa fish to compete with other aquatic products in the US, he said. 

According to the official, in the first quarter of 2018, export revenue of Vietnamese tra and basa fish exceeded 400 million USD, up about 7 percent year-on-year.

The figures reflect local businesses’ efforts to seek new markets in the face of unfavourable signs from the US market, he said.

Signs of recovery have also been seen in EU and South American markets, along with healthy growth in China, he added, urging greater efforts to balance the demand and supply of tra fish.

VNA