The U.S. Department of Commerce has assigned final antidumping duties to several dozen Chinese producers of decorative hardwood plywood, some of which is used in furniture.

The duties, which apply to goods shipped to the U.S. market and are assigned to importers of record, were set at 59.46% for most companies. Two companies, Linyi Sanfortune Wood Co. Ltd. and Jiangyang Group, received rates of 55.76% and 62.55%, respectively.

The DOC also determined an all-China rate of 121.65% to companies that don't have a history of shipping to the U.S. or who do not properly fill out a questionnaire the government requests as part of its review process.

The duties apply to goods shipped to the U.S. from Jan. 1 through June 30, 2012. They are placed on goods the U.S. government has determined are priced below fair market value to alleviate concerns voiced by U.S. manufacturers injured by illegally priced imports.

In its analysis, the DOC originally used the Philippines as a surrogate country to determine these fair market values, but later assigned Bulgaria as the surrogate country.

The same review assigned final countervailing duties of 27.16% to about 20 Chinese hardwood plywood manufacturers. These rates also are placed on the manufacturers but paid by importers of record of the subject merchandise.

Hardwood plywood is defined as a flat panel composed of an assembly of two or more layers of veneers in combination with a core. These are glued together to form material that is sometimes used in side panels, table tops and tops of dressers.

In addition to furniture, this material is used in shelving as well as in boats and other recreational vehicles.