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From Home Furnishing Business
AMA Releases Statement from U.S. Dept. of Justice Concerning Antidumping Petition
April 27,
2020 by Laurie Northington in Business Strategy, Industry 
The American Mattress Alliance has announced the U.S. Department of Justice’s Statement of Interest in regard to the antidumping investigation of mattresses from Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Serbia, Thailand, Turkey, and Vietnam.
The statement says, “The Department urges the International Trade Commission to consider the competitive effects of any action particularly in light of the ongoing national emergency related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (“COVID-19”) in evaluating allegations of material injury in the domestic market and deciding how to remedy any such injury.”
The Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice “enforces the federal antitrust laws and promotes competition and thereby consumer welfare.” In the statement, the Department of Justice says:
Competition is “[t]he heart of our national economic policy.” Standard Oil Co. v. FTC, 340 U.S. 231, 248 (1951). And vigorous competition—from foreign and domestic sources—provides consumers significant benefits, which often includes lower prices. Cf. Pac. Bell Tel. Co. v. Linkline Commc’ns, Inc., 555 U.S. 438, 451 (2009)[…] Competition also provides consumers other benefits like higher quality goods and better access to those goods.
According to the statement, “promoting competition that provides consumers with better access to mattresses at competitive prices may support the health and safety of millions of Americans.”
The Justice Department concludes by urging the Commission to consider the current atmosphere when making any assessments.
[T]he Department respectfully requests that the Commission take the competitive effects of the ongoing pandemic and its likely aftermath […] into account when assessing the extent to which domestic industry may be harmed by the conduct alleged in this case.
It is extremely rare for the Department of Justice to weigh in on a trade remedy proceeding. According to Eric Emerson, Chair of the International Trade & Investment Group at Steptoe & Johnson LLP, “In my nearly 30-year career, I’ve never seen the Department of Justice weigh in before on a trade remedy investigation. Its decision to speak up now demonstrates just how ill-timed and harmful this petition is.”
The full statement is available here, on the American Mattress Alliance website.