Antidumping, Countervailing Duties Will Be Imposed on Indonesian Producers after Withdrawal from Lined Paper Products Trade Cases

Washington, DC—Indonesian lined paper products producer PT Pabrik Kertas Tjiwi Kimia Tbk (TK) has told the U.S. Department of Commerce that it is withdrawing as an active participant from the antidumping and countervailing duty investigations involving lined paper products from Indonesia.  As a result, all Indonesian imports of lined paper products will likely be subject to heavy antidumping and countervailing duties.

TK, an affiliate of Indonesian conglomerate Asia Pulp and Paper, was a mandatory participant in the investigations.  Because of its withdrawal, antidumping duties will be assigned to all imports.  The Commerce Department is likely to impose duties in the range of 77.07 to 118.63%, as alleged at the outset of the investigation.  This is in addition to the 33.31%countervailing duties preliminarily imposed on all Indonesian imports earlier this month.

The investigations are in response to petitions filed by the Association of American School Paper Suppliers in September 2005.  The investigations primarily cover lined paper school supplies, such as notebooks, filler paper and composition books.

The Commerce Department has already suspended liquidation of all entries of certain lined paper product imports from Indonesia, and is requiring a cash deposit or the posting of a bond for such entries in the amount of the countervailing duty margin.  Additional cash deposits to cover the estimated antidumping duties will be required after the Department’s preliminary antidumping determination, due on or about March 20, 2006.

“The failure of Indonesian producers to participate means that substantial preliminary antidumping and countervailing duty margins will be imposed,” said Alan Price, counsel to the Association of American School Paper Suppliers.  “These margins will help level the playing field for American producers and their workers and eliminate unfair trade due to dumping and subsidies.”

The Commerce Department is continuing a full investigation of the margins of dumping in China and India and the subsidy programs in existence in India.  At this stage of the proceeding, antidumping duties have been established to be 258.21% for China and 181.86 to 215.93% for India.  After final determinations by Commerce, the International Trade Commission will render a final determination of material injury due to subject imports.