SHANGHAI, Dec. 9 (SMM) -- The US Commerce Department said on December 8th it has set additional preliminary duties of 5.08-26.23% on high-pressure steel cylinders from China. The US International Trade Commission has to give its approval before the Commerce Department can issue final anti-dumping and countervailing duty orders. According to the schedule, the Commerce Department will make its final decision on duty rates in February 2012, while the International Trade Commission’s vote is expected in April. US imports of the cylinders totaled about USD 48.8 million from China in 2010.

Steelease believes high-pressure steel cylinders as a very refined product variety account for a small proportion of the overall steel products, and if the anti-dumping duties are imposed on high-pressure steel cylinders, any effect on Chinese steel products should be limited. However, US and European countries posed frequent trade frictions with China in order to protect their own economy and enterprises amid their economic slowdown. China's exported products subject to international trade protection barriers will continue in the short term, and US and European countries will also continue to impose high anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties on Chinese steel products, which will have a great impact on China’s exports of steel products in the medium and long term.