Air Compressor Duties: Up to 112% on Imports From Oct 1

The trade case we have been following since the summer has its first numbers. The Commerce Department has set preliminary countervailing duties on piston air compressors from China, Malaysia and Vietnam, and importers start paying cash deposits from today. Separately, the CPSC has recalled a pressure washer sold on Amazon, Walmart and Temu that ships without the shock protection the US standard requires.

Commerce sets preliminary duties on imported air compressors

Three Federal Register notices published October 1, 2026 confirm that Commerce has preliminarily found the three countries’ compressor makers are getting countervailable government subsidies. The rates are cash deposits that US Customs will collect on entries from October 1 onward:

• Malaysia: 92.86% for every named company and for all others. Commerce says the companies it examined did not provide the information it asked for, so it used adverse facts available.
• Vietnam: 74.39% for most named producers, including Fusheng, Jinfeida, Tu-Seiki and TTI (Vietnam), and 37.20% for all others. Hybest-Vietnam got a de minimis 0.35% and its shipments are not being held.
• China: 3.84% for FNA (Zhejiang) and for all others, but 112.29% for six named companies, including Suzhou Alton and Taizhou Huanyang, which Commerce rated on adverse facts available.

The case was brought by MAT Industries. The scope is the segment most home and small-shop buyers shop in: reciprocating (piston) compressors from 0.5 to 30 HP with a built-in tank of 1 to 80 gallons, electric, gas or battery, oil-free or oiled, direct drive or belt drive. Kits that ship with a compressor plus hoses, nail guns, paint sprayers or air ratchets are covered too. Rotary screw, rotary vane, scroll and centrifugal machines are excluded, and so are small tankless inflators of 1 CFM or less.

What it means for buyers: these are subsidy duties only. The separate antidumping (dumping margin) determinations have not been published yet. Final subsidy rulings are aligned with them and due by February 10, 2027 unless postponed, and no permanent duty order follows unless the US International Trade Commission also finds injury. Importers carrying 92.86% or 74.39% deposits will either absorb them, raise prices, or move sourcing, so expect pancake, hot dog and small twin-stack prices on Malaysian and some Vietnamese brands to firm up over the winter. If a budget portable is already on your list, the best portable air compressors and home and garage picks are where we would start, and what size air compressor do I need stops you paying a duty-inflated price for more tank than you use. Sources: Federal Register notices for China, Malaysia and Vietnam.

LANCHEZ electric pressure washers recalled for shock risk

On September 17 the CPSC announced a recall of about 329 LANCHEZ 3.2 GPM electric pressure washers, model KLC-BULL135C, sold on Amazon.com, Walmart.com and Temu.com from February through June 2026 for $88 to $266. The units, in blue-and-black or red-and-black, lack a built-in ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) and an adequate-length power cord, which pushes owners onto extension cords and creates a serious shock and electrocution risk. CPSC has one report of a missing GFCI and no injuries.

What to do: stop using it, unplug it, cut the power cord in half, and email a photo showing the model number to service@lanchezpumps.com for a full refund. The same rule of thumb applies to any corded tool you run outside or near water, including an electric compressor: plug it into a GFCI-protected outlet and use the shortest heavy-gauge cord that reaches, which our air compressor accessories guide covers. Source: CPSC.