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Letter to the Editor

ITC Finds Imported Chinese Windshields Are Causing Injury to the Domestic Replacement Glass Windshield Industry

The U.S. International Trade Commission has determined that the domestic industry producing automotive replacement glass windshields is injured by imported Chinese windshields sold at dumped prices.

Officials with PPG Industries said they are pleased with today's 3-2 vote by the U.S. International Trade Commission that affirms imports of automotive replacement glass windshields from China are causing material injury to the domestic industry.

PPG and fellow domestic producers Safelite Glass Corp. and Viracon/Curvlite filed an antidumping petition Feb. 28, 2001.

"The imposition of antidumping duties on these imports will serve to restore a competitive market balance in the U.S.," said David Sharick, PPG vice president for automotive replacement glass. "[This] decision confirms what we have said for more than a year -- that unfairly priced replacement windshields from China are causing harm to the U.S. automotive replacement glass windshield industry. The commission's final staff report showed that imports from China had increased by 275 percent between 1998 and 2000 and an additional 38 percent in the first nine months of 2001 compared to the same period in 2000. During this period, the domestic industry saw net sales decline by more than $58 million and operating income levels decline by more than $20 million."

After the commission sends its decision and the reasons for its determination to the U.S. Department of Commerce, which is expected to occur March 28, the Department of Commerce will then issue an antidumping duty order to the U.S. Customs Service a week later.

"Today's decision is very positive news for Safelite and the rest of the domestic industry," announced Dee Uttermohlen, Manager for Retail and Internet Marketing at Safelite, a major U.S. maker of replacement windshields. "Dumped Chinese imports contributed to the pricing pressures that Safelite encountered at the time it filed Chapter 11 in 2000. But Safelite is not the only domestic producer that has been harmed by these dumped imports. The Commission's record showed that the industry's net sales by value fell more than 13 percent between 1998 and 2000. Operating income fell nearly 70 percent. We are hopeful that the imposition of an antidumping duty order will restore fair pricing to our market and turn these declines around."

The Department of Commerce issued final revised dumping margins earlier this month. The new margins are as follows: 11.80 percent for FYG, 3.71 percent for Xinyi, 9.84 percent for Benxun, Changchun Pilkington, Guilin Pilkington, Wuhan Pilkington, and TCGI; and 124.50 percent for all other Chinese producer/exporters. The Commission sends its decision and the reasons for its determination to Department of Commerce by March 28, and Commerce will issue an antidumping duty order within 7 days thereafter.

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