The United States International Trade Commission (ITC) today determined that there is a reasonable indication that a U.S. industry is materially injured or threatened with material injury by reason of imports of stainless steel bar from France, Germany, Korea, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom that are allegedly sold in the United States at less than fair value, and those from Italy that are allegedly subsidized and sold in the United States at less than fair value.

Chairman Stephen Koplan, Vice Chairman Deanna Tanner Okun, and Commissioners Lynn M. Bragg, Marcia E. Miller, and Jennifer A. Hillman voted in the affirmative. Commissioner Bragg specified that her affirmative determination was based on threat. Commissioner Dennis M. Devaney did not participate in these investigations.

As a result of the Commission's affirmative determinations, the U.S. Department of Commerce will continue to conduct its countervailing duty investigation of imports of stainless steel bar from Italy and its antidumping duty investigations of imports of stainless steel bar from France, Germany, Italy, Korea, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom, with its preliminary countervailing duty determination due on or about March 23, 2001, and its preliminary antidumping determinations due on or about June 6, 2001.

The Commission's public report Stainless Steel Bar from France, Germany, Italy, Korea, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom (Investigations Nos. 701-TA-413 and 731-TA-913-918 (Preliminary), USITC Publication 3395, February 2001) will contain the views of the Commission and information developed during the investigations.

Copies of the report are expected to be available after March 13, 2001, by calling 202-205-1809 or from the Office of the Secretary, 500 E Street SW, Washington, DC 20436. Requests may also be faxed to 202-205-2104.

Product Description: For purposes of these investigations, the term "stainless steel bar" includes articles of stainless steel in straight lengths that have been either hot-rolled, forged, turned, cold-drawn, cold-rolled or otherwise cold-finished, or ground, having a uniform solid cross section along their whole length in the shape of circles, segments of circles, ovals, rectangles (including squares), triangles, hexagons, octagons, or other convex polygons. Stainless steel bar includes cold-finished stainless steel bars that are turned or ground in straight lengths, whether produced from hot-rolled bar or from straightened and cut rod or wire, and reinforcing bars that have indentations, ribs, grooves, or other deformations produced during the rolling process. Except as specified above, the term does not include stainless steel semi-finished products, cut length flat-rolled products (i.e., cut length rolled products which if less than 4.75 mm in thickness have a width measuring at least 10 times the thickness, or if 4.75 mm or more in thickness having a width which exceeds 150 mm and measures at least twice the thickness), products that have been cut from stainless steel sheet, strip, or plate, wire (i.e., cold-formed products in coils, of any uniform solid cross section along their whole length, which do not conform to the definition of flat-rolled products), and angles, shapes and sections.

Status of Proceedings:
1. Type of investigations:  Preliminary phase countervailing duty and preliminary phase antidumping duty (1).
2. Petitioners: Carpenter Technology Corporation, Wyomissing, PA; Crucible Specialty Metals,
   Syracuse, NY; Electralloy Corp., Oil City, PA; Empire Specialty Steel, Inc., Dunkirk, NY;
   Slater Steels Corporation, Fort Wayne Specialty Alloys Division, Fort Wayne, IN; and United
   Steelworkers of America, AFL-CIO/CLC.
3. Preliminary phase investigations instituted by the USITC:  December 28, 2000.
4. Commission's conference:  January 18, 2001.
5. Commission's vote:  February 12, 2001.
6. Commission's notification of the U.S. Department of Commerce:  February 12, 2001.

U.S. Industry:
1. Number of producers in 1999:  12.
2. Location of producers' plants:  Production is in California, Indiana, Maryland, New York,
   North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina.
3. Employment of production and related workers in 1999:  1,873.
4. Apparent U.S. consumption in 1999: 237,150 short tons, valued at $674 million.
5. Ratio of quantity of imports to U.S. consumption in 1999:  36.9 percent.

U.S. Imports:
1. From the subject countries during 1999: 57,456 short tons, valued at $132 million.
2. From other countries during 1999: 30,087 short tons, valued at $67 million.