Domestic companies win massive trade case against dumped Chinese cabinets
Washington. The Coalition for a Prosperous America (CPA) is congratulating one of its members, Wellborn Cabinet, for winning one of the largest trade cases in U.S. history. The Alabama-based maker of wooden kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities led a coalition of manufacturers charging that Chinese firms have illegally subsidized and dumped product in the U.S. market. An estimated 250,000 jobs in the U.S. cabinet industry are at risk due to subsidized imports from China valued at $4.4 billion in 2018 alone.
“We are extremely pleased with the Commerce Department decision,” said CPA Chair Dan DiMicco. “Enforcing trade laws works and this new ruling will help domestic manufacturers and workers facing unfairly traded imports of Chinese cabinets and vanities.”
The Commerce Department determined that Chinese companies have dumped wooden cabinets and vanities in the United States at rates ranging from 4.37 percent to 262.18 percent. In addition, Commerce determined that Chinese companies received countervailable subsidies at rates ranging from 13.33 percent to 293.45 percent. More than 40 members of Congress had written to the International Trade Commission in support of a petition from the American Kitchen Cabinet Alliance. A hearing is now scheduled at the International Trade Commission on March 24 for a final injury determination.
Paul Wellborn, President and CEO of Wellborn Cabinet, said, “We are very thankful to the Department of Commerce for the antidumping and countervailing duty final determinations issued yesterday. We’re hopeful that on March 24, the International Trade Commission will affirm that the domestic cabinet industry has been injured as a result of unfair trade practices by China. This will help to keep jobs in America and also allow domestic manufacturers to reinvest in their facilities. We thank President Trump, the Department of Commerce, and Secretary Ross for their efforts to restore American manufacturing. And we also appreciate the efforts of Senators Rubio, Rounds, and Manchin for leading a letter of support from 22 other senators.”
Read more about the Commerce Department’s final determination on wooden cabinets and vanities from China.
