WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) today testified before the International Trade Commission (ITC) in support of Sunbeam Corporation’s efforts to prohibit the unfair imports from China of woven electric blankets. The U.S. woven electric blanket industry and the Sunbeam Corporation in Waynesboro, Mississippi, have been threatened by the Chinese “dumping” these blankets into the U.S. market.

“The Sunbeam workers in Mississippi are not afraid of competition, but that competition must be fair and in accordance with the laws of the United States,” said Senator Wicker in his testimony before the commission. “We need to level the playing field for the U.S. woven electric industry and impose appropriate anti-dumping duties on the Chinese imports.  The economic well-being of Sunbeam’s Mississippi employees, their families, and other local small businesses that rely on Sunbeam deserve fair treatment and the chance to compete.”

The Sunbeam facility in Waynesboro employs over 300 workers and is the last U.S. factory that produces woven electric blankets.  To combat the dumping of the woven electric blankets by the Chinese, Sunbeam petitioned the Department of Commerce/International Trade Office in June 2009 to investigate the unfair imports from China and assess antidumping duties. In January 2010, Senator Wicker and Senator Cochran sent a letter to Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke explaining the economic impact on Mississippi jobs and asking that the department enforce the trade laws.

“Low-cost Chinese imports are threatening Sunbeam’s ability to continue competitively manufacturing electric blankets in Waynesboro, and it is likely these unfair practices will result in more layoffs or potentially closure of the facility,” added Wicker. “We should be fostering the growth of American companies during these challenging economic times.”

Recognizing that the industry has been negatively impacted by imports dumped from China, the Department of Commerce preliminarily imposed an anti-dumping duty ranging upward from approximately 90% against the Chinese.

The ITC will make a final decision on the petition to impose anti-dumping duty by late July.

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