U.S. Chassis Producers File Trade Petitions for Relief from Unfairly Traded Imports from Mexico, Thailand, and Vietnam

February 26, 2025

Washington, DC – The U.S. Chassis Manufacturers Coalition filed petitions alleging that unfairly traded imports of chassis from Mexico, Thailand, and Vietnam are injuring, and threaten to further injure, the American chassis industry.

The petitions demonstrate that chassis producers in each country sell chassis in the United States at less than fair value. The petitioners request that antidumping duties be imposed to offset this dumping, at rates of 32.37% from Mexico, 234.06% from Thailand, and 304.68% from Vietnam.

The petitions also show that producers in Mexico and Thailand receive an unfair benefit from numerous countervailable subsidies, which, depending on the country, may include tax exemptions and/or incentives; duty exemptions; preferential lending; grant programs; state-level investment programs; and other support. There is also evidence that the government of the People’s Republic of China has provided cross border subsidies that benefit chassis manufacturers in Mexico and Thailand.

In 2020, successful trade cases were filed against state-owned Chinese chassis producer CIMC. Since then, CIMC relocated its U.S.-dedicated production to Thailand and again shipped large volumes of chassis to the United States. CIMC, along with producers in Mexico, Thailand, and Vietnam, used unfair prices to gain significant U.S. market share at the direct expense of the recovering U.S. industry. As a result of the decreasing volumes caused by unfairly traded imports, U.S. producers have suffered significant declines in production, shipments, profits, and employment.

“The U.S. chassis industry suffered years of injury at the hands of unfairly traded Chinese chassis," said Robert E. DeFrancesco, partner in Wiley’s International Trade Practice and counsel to petitioners. “After having successfully achieved relief, the U.S. industry saw a second surge of unfair imports from new sources. While the sources of dumped and subsidized imports have shifted, they still have the same effect: taking domestic market share and eroding a proud American manufacturing industry.”

“The U.S. industry has experienced substantial injury by these new sources of subject imports,” added DeFrancesco. “It is imperative that Commerce and the USITC apply our long-standing trade laws to remedy these unfair trade practices.”

FACT SHEET

Antidumping and Countervailing Duties: Antidumping duties are intended to offset the amount by which a product is sold at less than fair value, or “dumped,” in the United States. The margin of dumping is calculated by Commerce. Estimated duties in the amount of the dumping are collected from importers at the time of importation. Countervailing duties are intended to offset unfair subsidies that are provided by foreign governments and benefit the production of a particular good. The USITC, an independent agency, will determine whether the domestic industry is materially injured or threatened with material injury by reason of the unfairly traded imports.

Product Description: The products covered by these investigations consists of chassis and subassemblies thereof, whether finished or unfinished, whether assembled or unassembled, whether coated or uncoated, regardless of the number of axles, for carriage of containers, or other payloads (including self-supporting payloads) for road, marine roll-on/roll-off (RORO) and/or rail transport. Chassis are typically, but are not limited to, rectangular framed trailers with a suspension and axle system, wheels and tires, brakes, a lighting and electrical system, a coupling for towing behind a truck tractor, and a locking system or systems to secure the shipping container or containers to the chassis using twistlocks, slide pins or similar attachment devices to engage the corner fittings on the container or other payload.

Next Steps: Commerce will determine whether to initiate the investigations within 20 days of today’s filing, and the USITC will reach a preliminary determination of material injury or threat of material injury within 45 days. The entire investigative process will take approximately one year, with final determinations of dumping, subsidization, and injury likely occurring in early 2026. However, duties can attach to imports of the subject chassis at the time of the preliminary determinations in the case, or even earlier.

The Coalition is represented by Wiley Rein LLP.

For more information, please contact:

Robert E. DeFrancesco, III
202-719-7473
RDeFrancesco@wiley.law

Laura El-Sabaawi
202-719-7042
lel-sabaawi@wiley.law