New trade case on imports of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid from China and India

By Mark R. Ludwikowski , R. Kevin Williams , Aristeo Lopez , Kelsey J. Christensen , Sally Alghazali

New U.S. antidumping (″AD″) and countervailing duty (″CVD″) petitions were filed on March 14 by Corteva Agriscience LLC (″Corteva″ or ″Petitioner″) against imports of 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid (″2,4-D″) from China and India.

The merchandise covered by these petitions consists of 2,4-D, which is an active ingredient in herbicides that contains carbon, hydrogen, chlorine, and oxygen. Herbicides are a subcategory of pesticides. In its pure form, 2,4-D acid is a dry crystalline solid. For practical application as an herbicide or plant-growth regulator, 2,4-D must be formulated to readily disperse upon application and to suitably mix with water. Accordingly, it is converted into various derivative forms, including salts, and esters. Products containing 2,4-D derivatives, such as its salt and ester forms, are blended with other active ingredients, chemicals and/or water to create end-use crop protection products. Products containing 2,4-D may come in the form of liquids (concentrated or ready-to-use), dusts, or granules. Please see below for the full text of the proposed scope for the investigations.

The Department of Commerce (″DOC″) and the U.S. International Trade Commission (″ITC″) will conduct the investigations. Within the next 45 days, the ITC will determine if there is a reasonable indication that the imports are injuring or threatening to injure the U.S. industry. If the ITC finds that this standard is met, the cases will move to the DOC, which will calculate the preliminary AD and CVD duty margins.

The DOC’s preliminary determinations are currently expected by June 7 (CVD) and Aug. 21(AD). On the date of publication of DOC’s preliminary determinations, importers will be required to deposit the calculated duties upon the products’ entry into the U.S. market.

Importers should also be aware that entries may be subject to AD/CVD cash deposits 90 days before the DOC preliminary determinations if the DOC issues a finding of ″critical circumstances,″ meaning that imports increased by at least 15 percent following the filing of the petition compared to a similar period (typically three months) before the petition.

There are strict statutory deadlines associated with these proceedings and affected companies are advised to prepare as soon as possible. If this product is of interest to you, please let us know so that we can provide you with additional information as it becomes available. A schedule of approximate key dates is attached below.

The following are key facts about this trade case:

Petitioner: Corteva

AD/CVD margins: Petitioner alleged the following AD/CVD margins:

• China: Dumping margins of 143.73% or 388.53%, ad valorem, and countervailing duty margins above de minimis; and

• India: Dumping margin of 66.26%, ad valorem, and countervailing duty margins above de minimis.

Merchandise covered by the scope of the case:

The proposed scope of this investigation describes the subject merchandise as:

The merchandise covered by this investigation is 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (″2,4-D″). 2,4-D has the Chemical Abstracts Service (″CAS″) registry number 94-75-7 and the chemical formula C8H6Cl2O3. The 2,4­D component of any derivative products of 2,4-D, including but not limited to, amine salt and ester forms of 2,4-D are covered by the scope of the order.

Salt and ester forms of 2,4-D include, but are not limited to, 2,4-D salt (CAS 2702-72-9), 2,4-D diethanolamine salt (CAS 5742-19-8), 2,4-D dimethyl amine salt (CAS 2008-39-1), 2,4-D-isopropylamine salt (CAS 5742-17-6), 2,4-D tri-isopropanolamine salt (CAS 32341-80-3), 2,4-D BEE (CAS 1929-73-3), 2,4-D 2-ethylhexylester (CAS 1928-43-4), and 2,4-D -isopropylester (CAS 94-11-1). All 2,4-D, as well as the 2,4-D component of its salt and ester forms, is covered by the scope irrespective of purity, particle size, or physical form.

The conversion of a 2,4-D salt or ester from a subject 2,4-D acid, or the formulation of nonsubject merchandise with the subject 2,4-D, its salts, and its esters in the country of manufacture or in a third country does not remove the subject 2,4-D, its salts, or its esters from the scope. For any such formulations, only the 2,4-D, 2,4-D salt, and 2,4-D ester components of the mixture are covered by the scope of the order.

2,4-D, its salts, and its esters are classified under Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) subheading 2918.99.2010. Other merchandise subject to the current scope, including the abovementioned formulations that may be classified under 3808.93.0500 and 3808.93.1500. The HTSUS subheadings and CAS registry number are provided for convenience and customs purposes. The written description of the scope of the petition is dispositive.

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