The Impact of Duties, in Purchasers’ and Foreign Producers’ Own Words

Commissioner Johanson: “Did you see any changes in the market following the imposition of preliminary relief?” Mark Palicki, COO of Fortune International: “The prices are going up. The prices went up last week, actually – just domestically as well, from the fishermen.”[1]

Commissioner Johanson: “I would think, though, the duty being put on the product would probably impact the market somehow. Did you not see that?” Mr. Palicki: “…. That could be a factor, for sure, they’re preparing for it.”[2]

“Preliminary relief has had a major impact on competition within Indonesia …. As the prices have increased, the majority of Indonesian producers have been unable to pass along the costs to customers because they recently increased their costs due to the antidumping duties.”[3]

[1] ITC Hearing Transcript (Oct. 22, 2024) at p. 189.

[2] Id.

[3] Indonesian Producers’ Posthearing Brief (Oct. 30, 2024), Answers to Questions at p. 5.

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After preliminary duties …

On April 1 and May 30, 2024, Commerce imposed preliminary countervailing and antidumping duties on shrimp imports from Ecuador, India, Indonesia, in Vietnam. In October of 2024, foreign producers and purchasers told the International Trade Commission that preliminary duties were already having an impact on the market.

The data confirms that they were correct.

In yesterday’s post, we showed that imports fell by 55.8 million pounds in the first four months since the combined preliminary duties were imposed.

In today’s post, we show that the average unit value of imports from the four subject countries, which had been falling sharply since January of 2023, hit a low of $3.43/pound in March of 2024. After preliminary duties were imposed in April and May of 2024, average import unit values began to rise for the first time in nearly a year.

As import volumes fell and import unit values rose, domestic prices also began to recover.

After falling to rock bottom levels in March of 2024, preliminary duties boosted Gulf ex-vessel prices for every count size for which data are available. From March to August of 2024, prices to the boats increased by up to 44.4 percent, depending on the count size.

After duties were imposed in 2024, shrimp boats saw the first improvements in prices since 2021. The data prove that preliminary duties provided desperately needed relief from the harm that dumped and subsidized imports had caused.

“When we started this case, some people said tariffs wouldn’t work,” said Trey Pearson, the President of ASPA. “They were wrong.”

“Thanks to the duties ASPA was able to obtain, imports have fallen and import prices have risen,” continued Mr. Pearson. “This means more money for our fleet and for the entire domestic industry. I cannot be prouder of ASPA’s efforts, and I want to thank all of the shrimpers that took the time to register their support for our case from the very beginning.”

This is the ninth in a series of “Shrimp Duties Updates” from ASPA to keep members of our industry informed about the facts and figures underlying ASPA’s shrimp case. These updates will be available on ASPA’s website and you can sign up to receive them. Stay tuned for the next Shrimp Duties Update!