Ministry of Economy initiates antidumping investigation against Japanese steel plate

The Ministry of Economy accepted the interested party’s request and declared the start of the antidumping administrative investigation procedure regarding imports of steel plate originating in Japan, regardless of the country of provenance. The resolution, signed by Secretary Marcelo Luis Ebrard Casaubon, was published in the Official Gazette of the Federation on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, and will enter into force the day following its publication.

The request was submitted on April 21, 2026, by Grupo Acerero, S.A. de C.V., with the express support of Ternium, which together constitute the entirety of the domestic industry of the product. The investigation is based on the alleged practice of price discrimination (dumping) that has caused material injury to the Mexican steel industry.

The product and tariff headings

The product under investigation is carbon steel plate: flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel, hot-rolled, not clad, plated or coated and not coiled, with a thickness equal to or greater than 4.75 millimeters and a width equal to or greater than 600 millimeters. In the international market, it is identified as plate, medium plate, heavy plate, or cut-to-length steel plate.

The investigated imports enter Mexico through tariff headings 7208.51.04 and 7208.52.01 of the TIGIE, or any other. To support the chemical composition and characteristics of the product, the applicant presented catalogs from the Japanese companies JFE Steel Corporation and Nippon Steel Corporation.

The domestic industry

Grupo Acerero proved its status as a domestic producer through a letter from CANACERO dated April 20, 2026, and Ternium expressed its support for the request on April 21, 2026. The Ministry confirmed that both are the only domestic producers of steel plate during the analyzed period.

• Grupo Acerero produced 56% of the domestic production in the analyzed period and 62% in the investigated period.
• Together with Ternium, the request is backed by 100% of the total domestic production.
• The applicant did not import the product nor is it linked to Japanese exporters or importers.

Evidence of dumping and injury

The Ministry initially determined that Japanese imports were carried out with a price discrimination margin exceeding the de minimis level and caused material injury to the domestic industry. Among the main elements, the following stand out:

• Imports originating from Japan grew 35 times during the analyzed period, moving from representing 0.2% to contributing 8.3% of total imports.
• The average price of the investigated imports was 15%, 17%, and 24% below the national price in 2023, 2024, and 2025, respectively.
• Adverse effects were recorded in production, domestic market sales, revenues, operating losses, and the operating margin of the national industry.

The investigated period spans from January 1 to December 31, 2025, and the injury analysis period from January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2025. Producers, importers, exporters, and any person with a legal interest will have a period of 23 business days to prove their interest and present arguments and evidence through the International Trade Practices Unit.

The resolution will be notified to the companies and the Government of Japan, via the Embassy of Japan in Mexico, and will be communicated to ANAM and SAT for the corresponding legal purposes. The investigation is relevant because, if dumping is confirmed, the Ministry may impose definitive countervailing duties on Japanese imports, which would protect the national steel industry and directly affect importers and steel prices in the Mexican market.

Source: Official Gazette of the Federation, No. 239/2026, Wednesday, September 2, 2026, Ministry of Economy, pp. 21-47 (official reference: Resolution by which the interested party’s request is accepted and the initiation of the administrative anti-dumping investigation procedure on imports of steel sheet originating from Japan is declared).