The US commerce department has established final duties on shrimp imports from Ecuador and four Asian countries, with the exception of major suppliers, Thailand and Indonesia.
The Coalition of Shrimp Industries, representing shrimp fishermen and processors in several southern US states, filed a petition last year, requesting the federal government for import relief. The group said it is satisfied with the decision, despite the exclusion of two major exporters.
The seven countries named in the case - Thailand, Indonesia, India, Ecuador, Vietnam, Malaysia and China - exported close to US$3.4 billion worth of shrimps to the US in 2012, making it one of the biggest cases in the department's history.
The amount included US$1.1 billion from Thailand, US$634 million from Indonesia, US$551 million from India, US$500 million from Ecuador, US$426 million from Vietnam, US$142 million from Malaysia and US$102 million from China.
The duties are imposed in retaliation to government subsidies received by producers in these nations. The amount of government subsidies varied from country to country. In the cases of Thailand and Indonesia, the subsidies are so low that there's no requirement for duties on shrimp imports.
Malaysia was slapped the highest duties, ranging from 10.8% to 54.5%. China received a final duty of 18.16% and India, from 5.54% to 6.16%.
The Commerce Department set duties of 10.13% to 13.51% on shrimp imports from Ecuador and up to 7.88% on imports from Vietnam.
Industry officials noted that the low duties will make a difference in an industry where margins are thin.
"We appreciate these robust numbers from the Commerce Department," said David Veal, executive director of the Coalition of Shrimp Industries.
Final approval of the duties is required from the US International Trade Commission (ITC) in order for the measure to take effect. Importers will also need to post bonds or cash deposits based on earlier announced preliminary rates.
A vote for the duties is set for September 2013. For duties to be imposed, the panel must determine that US producers have been materially injured, or at least are facing material injury, by the imports.
At an ITC hearing, Louisiana's Lieutenant Governor, Jay Dardenne, argued that imports from the seven countries have put the fishermen's livelihood and their way of life at risk.
"Many of the shrimp-related businesses in Louisiana are family-owned and operated with relatives working together generation upon generation. Allowing foreign countries to engage in unfair trade practices will force Louisiana folks to relinquish their heritage," Dardenne said.
However, lawyers for a coalition of seafood importers, including Chicken of the Sea Frozen Foods and Ore-Cal Corp, said that a rise in shrimp prices this year undermines the US industry's argument that it is being affected by the imports.
In addition, shrimp processors and fisherman, affected by the 2010 BP oil spill, have received more than US$118 million in compensation for lost income and stand to receive further sums as a result of a proposed settlement agreement, said Warren Connelly of the Akin Gump law firm.
As a result, the industry is financially healthier than it has been in a decade, at a time when shrimp disease outbreaks in Asia are significantly reducing the region's exports this year, Connelly said.
