Commerce Begins Review of Vietnam's Market Economy Status

The Commerce Department will review whether to grant Vietnam market economy status in antidumping duty proceedings, it announced in a notice released Oct. 27 that begins a changed circumstances review.

The review, which will be carried out as a review on raw honey from Vietnam but will include input from a variety of industries, manufacturers and importers, among others, will determine whether Vietnam should be graduated to market economy status, which could result in lower and more predictable AD rates for Vietnamese companies.

Commerce will accept public comments as part of the inquiry, due 30 days from publication of the notice in the Federal Register (i.e., Nov. 29 if the notice is published as scheduled Oct. 30).

In its request for market economy status, filed in September (see 2309150044), the Vietnamese government said it has reduced the level of government ownership control over the Vietnamese economy, doesn't set price controls and treats foreign investment equally, among other things. Commerce denied China’s request for market economy status in 2017 (see 1710300043).

The final results of the review are due 270 days after the beginning of the review (i.e., in July 2024), though the due date may be extended.