DNP and Armor pull out of Government investigation

Armor and DNP have withdrawn from the DOC investigation into the alleged dumping of thermal transfer ribbons into the US from Japan, Korea and France. The anti-dumping petition was raised by IIMAK in May 2003 and the DOC is expected to make its preliminary determination by the 16 December 2003.

A chosen respondent can decline the DOC request, but as a default, the DOC applies the dumping margin initially alleged by IIMAK and accepted by the DOC, to the non-participating respondent. As a consequence, if the ITC decides affirmatively on injury, the respondents’ future imports will always be subject to a 147 per cent duty.

‘This decision in no way changes our certainty that DNP’s ribbons are traded fairly,’ says vice president of sales and marketing at DNP, Brett Cameron. ‘Continuing to divert our attention and resources to an investigation that we view to be irrelevant would undermine our commitment to our partners to service their TTR needs.

The DOC requires a very detailed market price analysis where the respondent must fill out a lengthy questionnaire, host a site visit and make extensive legal filings. The DOC then takes the dumping margins – if there are any – calculated against the inputs of this subset of respondents and applies them to all the respondents from that country. Armor withdrew citing the ‘burdensome nature and extreme expense’ of participating.

If the DOC reaches an affirmative preliminary determination, French, Japanese and South Korean importers will be required to post a bond to cover potential duties on the merchandise. Final determinations by the DOC and ITC are expected between April and June 2004.


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for full details on the case so far, possible outcomes and their implications for the US TTR market.