The Vietnamese Trade Ministry said this week it will impose temporary anti-dumping tariffs on some galvanized steel products from China and South Korea.
The tariffs were evidently prompted by pressure from Vietnam’s Steel Association, which has been asking for protection from rapidly increasing Chinese and South Korean steel imports since February. Vietnam has previously imposed anti-dumping tariffs on other forms of steel imported from China.
The Vietnamese Trade Ministry began an investigation of galvanized steel dumping in June 2024 at the request of five major domestic steel companies. The largest of those companies, Hoa Sen Group, holds 27.6 percent of the Vietnamese steel market.
The Vietnamese Trade Industry said that beginning on April 16, all but a few Chinese manufacturers of galvanized steel products would be hit with a tariff of 37.13 percent.
Most South Korean steel manufacturers will be levied at 15.67 percent, although Hyundai Steel will pay only 13.7 percent and a few others will be exempt.
The ministry said these tariffs were necessary to “curb the rapid growth of imports which could cause serious harm to the domestic industry.” According to its statement, imports of galvanized steel from China and South Korea have increased by 20% since the anti-dumping investigation began in June.
The United States has, in turn, named Vietnam alongside China and South Korea as some of the many countries dumping steel into U.S. markets to drive prices down and weaken the U.S. steel industry.
President Donald Trump imposed a 25 percent tariff on most metal imports in February, and it took effect in March. On Wednesday, Trump announced a 46 percent tariff on all imports from Vietnam as part of his “Liberation Day” tariff rollout.