Says Koreans avoided penalities by moving production to China
Whirlpool has filed an antidumping petition with the U.S. Commerce Department and the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), charging that Samsung and LG are selling their washers here below cost.
The world’s largest majap maker contends that the Korean companies skirted the agencies’ earlier anti-dumping rulings and import tariffs by moving laundry production from Mexico and their home country to China.
Whirlpool, which initiated the previous investigations in 2011, said their actions injure domestic washer manufacturers and threaten American manufacturing jobs.
“Samsung and LG have blatantly ignored a previous U.S. government order by continuing to dump washers into the United States,” said Whirlpool president/COO Marc Bitzer. “Our ability to innovate, invest and continue to manufacture here in the U.S. is undermined when foreign competitors willfully defy U.S. government rulings.”
In a separate case that was also brought by Whirlpool, the Commerce Department determined in 2012 that Samsung washers were unlawfully subsidized by the Korean government, allowing the company to undercut competitors on price. LG was cleared of similar charges.
Whirlpool expects it will take a year for the Commerce Department to rule on the current case, and a year after that before the ITC issues a final determination and possible remedies.
