Vietnam is set to impose anti-dumping duties on steel from China, joining South Korea and other countries as they grapple with surging supplies from the world’s largest producer.
The Southeast Asian nation will impose temporary duties on some types of hot-rolled steel coils starting in early March, the Ministry of Industry and Trade said in a statement on Friday.
Vietnam is the single largest buyer of Chinese steel after China itself, and hot-rolled steel coils are a top export product.
China exported the most steel abroad in nine years in 2024 as its producers turned to global markets to offset a sharp slowdown in China’s construction sector. That paved the way for President Donald Trump to propose a 25% tariff on all imports into the United States, prompting countries from South Korea to Brazil and India to consider imposing tariffs.
A wave of protectionist policies will increase pressure on Beijing to curb its 1 billion-tonne steelmaking capacity after several years of slowing domestic demand.
China steel futures fell 1.8%, while Vietnamese steelmakers posted gains.
China and the Steel Industry
The latest tariff decisions “may prompt the Chinese government to launch a new round of supply-side reforms” to strengthen supply discipline and improve industry profitability, analysts including Jack Chang at Citigroup wrote in a research note. Vietnam’s temporary tariffs, ranging from 19.38% to 27.83%, will take effect on March 7 and will last for 120 days.
China exported about 8 million tonnes of hot-rolled steel coils to Vietnam last year, and tariffs are likely to apply to about half of the imported volume, Citigroup said, citing discussions with industry players.
Vietnam Goes Easy on India
The anti-dumping probe was launched at the request of Hoa Phat Group and Formosa Ha Tinh Steel, two of Vietnam’s biggest steelmakers, which requested an investigation into imports from India and China last year. The Vietnamese government has said it will not impose duties on imports from India for now.
Hot-rolled steel coil futures on the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 1.3%, while iron ore prices in Singapore were little changed at $107.45 a tonne.
