U.S. IMPORTS OF CHINA DROP 60%

Chinese solar imports drop for three consecutive months; June import value declines 60 percent from 2011 levels

August 13, 2012 (Coalition for American Solar Manufacturing)

“For the third straight month, imports of Chinese solar cells and panels into the United States decreased year-over-year…In June, Chinese solar imports totaled $99.6 million, down almost 60 percent from $241.5 million in June 2011, according to the Department of Commerce…The year-over-year decline is significant and reflects the market's rising recognition of the costs, risks and uncertainties associated with importing Chinese solar cells and panels…

“While some of the year-on-year decrease is due to sharply falling module prices from 2011 to 2012, June 2012 imports of Chinese solar cells and panels were also down 20 percent from the previous month's total of $124.1 million. Between the same two months in 2011, the value of Chinese imports increased 7 percent.”

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“…Chinese import levels for all of 2012 are still ahead of last year's record pace: For the first six months of this year, the total value of Chinese cell and panel imports reached $1.32 billion, up from $1.23 billion for the same period of 2011, an increase of 7.3 percent…The increase is even more significant because dumped and subsidized Chinese pricing has lowered the per-watt average import values so dramatically in 2011 and 2012.

“… June was the first month in which Chinese manufacturers were fully affected by both preliminary anti-subsidy duties of up to 4.73 percent on Chinese cells and panels that Commerce announced on March 26, 2012, and preliminary antidumping duties on Chinese solar cell and panel imports…announced on May 25, 2012…[of up to 31 percent on specifically named combinations of producers and exporters]…[The] duties were retroactive to Dec. 27, 2011, and the anti-dumping duties were retroactive to Feb. 25…”

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