China's Ministry of Commerce said on Wednesday that it will continue to impose anti-dumping and countervailing duties on imports of DDGS from the United States for a period of five years.

China will continue to impose tariffs of up to 66% on the product after a one-year review period that expires in 2021 and ends on January 11. Anti-dumping duties range from 42.2% to 53.7%, while countervailing duties range from 11.2% to 12%.

The Ethanol Branch of the China Alcoholic Drinks Association issued a statement on the WeChat public account, welcoming the announcement of the Ministry of Commerce. The statement stated that in the past five years, the imposition of double tariffs has achieved remarkable results, effectively curbing unfair trade from the United States and ensuring the healthy development of the domestic distiller's grains industry. If the anti-subsidy and anti-dumping measures are terminated, the United States is likely to dump a large amount of DDGS at low prices again, which may continue or cause damage to the domestic industry again.

Analysts say Chinese ethanol producers are struggling because of high prices for raw material corn and weak domestic consumption.

The continuation of anti-dumping duties is not expected to have a significant impact on U.S. exports, as U.S. exporters have tapped into other markets, such as South Korea and Mexico, since China imposed anti-dumping duties in 2016.