New Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Petitions on Van-Type Trailers and Subassemblies Thereof from Canada, Mexico, and China

Introduction

On November 20, 2025, domestic producers filed petitions with the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) and the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), seeking antidumping (AD) and countervailing duties (CVD) on imports of van-type trailers and subassemblies thereof from Canada, Mexico and the People’s Republic of China.

Petitioners include the American Trailer Manufacturers Coalition and its members, Great Dane LLC, Stoughton Trailers LLC and Wabash National Corporation.

According to petitioners, U.S. imports of the covered merchandise from the identified countries have significantly increased since 2016, valued at $1.5 billion in calendar year 2024. Petitioners allege that the volume of imports from Mexico increased after Hyundai Translead, a Korean-owned trailer producer, opened additional manufacturing facilities in Mexico in 2016. Petitioners also allege that imports from China increased after the Chinese state-owned firm China International Marine Containers (Group) Co., Ltd. (CIMC) established new manufacturing facilities in China to ship van-type trailer kits to its U.S. affiliate Vanguard National Trailer Corporation. With respect to Canada, petitioners allege that imports increased shortly after the U.S. imposed Section 301 duties on imports of van-type trailers from China, prompting CIMC to establish assembly facilities in Canada.  

These new AD and CVD petitions of van-type trailers and subassemblies thereof follow the petitions filed in February 2025 against imports of certain chassis and subassemblies thereof from Mexico, Thailand and Vietnam, involving closely related products and many of the same parties. 

Under U.S. law, a domestic industry may petition the government to initiate an AD investigation into the pricing of an imported product to determine whether it is sold in the United States at less than fair value (i.e., “dumped”). A domestic industry may also petition the government to initiate a CVD investigation into the alleged subsidization of foreign producers and exporters by a foreign government. Additional duties can be imposed if DOC determines that imported goods are “dumped” and/or subsidized, and if the ITC makes an affirmative determination with respect to injury by reason of imports.

If the ITC and DOC make preliminary affirmative determinations, U.S. importers will be required to post cash deposits in the amount of the AD and/or CVDs for all entries on or after the date DOC’s preliminary determinations are published in the Federal Register. The preliminary AD/CVD rates can change in the final DOC determinations, especially if foreign producers and their governments participate fully in the investigations.

Scope

The physical characteristics of the covered products, which define the scope, are as follows:

The merchandise covered by these investigations consists of certain van-type trailers and subassemblies thereof, whether finished or unfinished, whether assembled or unassembled, regardless of the number of axles, for carriage of goods. Van-type trailers are typically, but not limited to, rectangular cuboid trailers with a fully enclosed cargo space consisting of a front nose (with or without a refrigeration unit), side walls (with or without doors), movable rear panels (whether roll-up doors, swing doors or another configuration), a floor and subframe, an affixed or removable roof, a suspension and axle system, wheels and tires, brakes, a lighting and electrical system, landing gear, and coupling for towing behind a truck tractor or a connection system for training behind another van-type trailer. Covered van­type trailers are those with a gross vehicle weight rating of greater than 26,000 pounds.

Subject merchandise includes, but is not limited to, the following subassemblies:

• Van-type trailer subframes, or sections of van-type trailer frames, typically consisting of welded crossmembers and slider rails for attaching the running gear.
• Nose wall, side wall and roof subassemblies, whether insulated or non-insulated, and with or without top, bottom or side rails.
• Rear door frame, whether for swing or roll-up doors, with or without installed doors, bumpers, bumper plates or reinforcing plates for liftgate.
• Door assemblies, whether for rear swing doors, roll-up doors, side doors or any other configuration, with or without lockrods, handles, hinges or hinge pins.
• Rear impact guard subassemblies, typically consisting of a fabricated horizontal structural component (such as a guard tube) and uprights for connection to the underside of the rear frame.
• Coupler assembly for connection to truck tractors’ fifth wheel, typically consisting of main beams and cross members, support plates and front nose wrap, and with or without kingpin installed.
• Running gear subassemblies or axle assemblies for connection to the subframe, which may or may not include suspension(s), wheel end components, slack adjusters, dressed axles, brake chambers, locking pins, wheels and tires.
• Landing gear subassemblies, typically consisting of two landing legs, a cross channel, braces, bracketing, a cross shaft and a crank handle.

These subassemblies are subject to the investigation, whether entered alone or with other subassemblies and whether assembled or unassembled. The absence of any subassembly from an otherwise finished or unfinished van-type trailer does not remove the van-type trailer from coverage.

Subject merchandise also includes van-type trailers and subassemblies entered with components such as, but not limited to: hub and drum assemblies, brake assemblies (either drum or disc), bare axles, brake chambers, suspensions and suspension components, wheel end components, landing gear legs, wheels, tires, brake control systems, electrical harnesses and lighting systems, lift gate systems, tire inflation systems or refrigeration units (with or without evaporators or fuel tanks).

Processing of finished and unfinished van-type trailers and subassemblies—such as trimming, cutting, grinding, notching, punching, drilling, painting, coating, staining, finishing, assembly, or any other processing either in the country of manufacture of the in-scope product or in a third country—does not remove the product from the scope. Inclusion of other components not identified as comprising the finished or unfinished van-type trailer does not remove the product from the scope.

The finished and unfinished van-type trailers subject to these investigations are typically classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) at subheadings 8716.39.0040 and 8716.90.5060. Imports of finished and unfinished subassemblies may also enter under HTSUS subheadings 7308.30.5050, 7308.90.9590, 7326.90.8688, 8708.29.1500, 8708.99.8180 and 8716.90.5010. While the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the merchandise under investigation is dispositive.

Foreign Producers and Exporters of Subject Merchandise

A list of foreign producers and exporters of van-type trailers and subassemblies thereof, as identified in the petitions, is provided in Attachment 1. 

U.S. Importers of Subject Merchandise

A list of the U.S. importers of van-type trailers and subassemblies thereof, as identified in the petitions, is also provided in Attachment 2. 

Alleged Margins of Dumping/Subsidization

Petitioners allege the following dumping margins:

• Mexico: 209.47 to 431.89%
• Canada: 223.13 to 297.26%
• China: 362.65 to 1,363.25%

DOC generally assigns duties at these alleged dumping rates to exporters that fail to cooperate during the investigations.

The petitions include no specific subsidy rates.

Potential Trade Impact

According to official U.S. import statistics, total imports of van-type trailers and subassemblies reached over $1.5 billion in 2024. Of this amount, the vast majority ($1.49 billion) was imported from Mexico, a total of $55.7 million was imported from Canada and approximately $230,000 from China.

Estimated Schedule of Investigations