Korean Oil Tubular Goods Quota Questioned to Protect US Steel

[ABS News Services/04.09.2024]

Senate Democrats Sherrod Brown (Ohio), Bob Casey (Pa) and John Fetterman (Pa) are calling on the Administration to reduce the current import quota set for oil country tubular goods from South Korea to reflect the lower demand and to level the playing field for the domestic OCTG industry and its workers.

The reduced demand and out-of-date quota has affected companies like Tenaris, which has facilities in Ohio and Pennsylvania and Vallourec, which has a presence in Ohio, the senators said in letters to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and US Trade Representative Katherine Tai.

The quota was originally established in 2018 but is now outdated and ineffective due to lower demand for OCTG. according to the senators.

OCTG consumption is expected to decline by about 22 percent this year compared to 2023. “Simultaneously, South Korea no longer has a home market to purchase OCTG products, so their industry is solely reliant on exports,” the senators wrote. “The reduced demand coupled with high levels of South Korean imports is hurting American OCTG companies and has resulted in over 220 layoffs and/or reductions in workforce at plants in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, and Texas. This is unacceptable.”