Source: SteelOrbis and Yieh Corp., based on the Korea Trade Commission's decision of September 17, 2026
South Korea's Trade Commission (KTC) has recommended extending the existing anti-dumping measures on H-beams imported from China for a further five years, and in a separate decision recommended provisional anti-dumping duties of 25.08-27.96 percent on Chinese steel bars. Both rulings were adopted at the commission's 477th meeting on September 17 and will be forwarded to the Ministry of Economy and Finance for final action.
For H-beams, the KTC reached a final affirmative determination in the second sunset review, concluding that terminating the current measures could lead to a recurrence of dumping and injury to the domestic industry. The review was requested by Hyundai Steel and Dongkuk Steel in September 2025 and formally initiated in December the same year. Under the recommendation, price undertakings will remain in place for another five years for Shandong Iron and Steel Laiwu Co. and Rizhao Medium Section Mill Co. and their related companies. For Shanxi Antai H-beam, Inner Mongolia Baotou Steel Union, Maanshan Iron & Steel, Hebei Jinxi Iron and Steel Group, Tangshan Fengrun Tianxing Iron and Steel, Tangshan Hongrun Steel and their related companies, the commission proposed maintaining an anti-dumping duty of 32.72 percent, while other Chinese suppliers would remain subject to a 28.23 percent duty. The existing regime, combining duties of 28.23-32.72 percent with price undertakings, has been in force since March 30, 2021.
In a parallel investigation, the KTC issued a preliminary affirmative determination on steel bars from China, finding that dumped imports had caused material injury to the domestic industry. It recommended provisional duties of 25.08-27.96 percent to prevent further harm while the probe continues. The bar case was filed by SeAH Besteel and SeAH Changwon Integrated Special Steel on February 27, 2026, with the investigation launched on May 7. The commission expects to issue its final determination in February 2027.
The H-beam measure was first imposed in 2015 and extended after a 2020 sunset review, making the latest decision the second review. As trade barriers rise across multiple overseas markets, the dual moves - extending a decade-old restriction on H-beams while opening a new front on bars - further raise the threshold for Chinese steel entering South Korea, one of the country's important export destinations.
