UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, DC 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF
THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of report (Date of earliest event reported) March 30, 2011
WHIRLPOOL CORPORATION
(Exact name of registrant as Specified in Charter)
| Delaware | 1-3932 | 38-1490038 | ||
| (State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation) |
(Commission File Number) |
(IRS Employer Identification No.) | ||
| 2000 M-63 North, Benton Harbor, Michigan | 49022-2692 | |||
| (Address of Principal Executive Offices) | (Zip Code) | |||
(269) 923-5000
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
| ¨ | Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
| ¨ | Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
| ¨ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
| ¨ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
| Item 8.01. | Other Events. |
On March 30, 2011, Whirlpool Corporation issued a press release announcing the filing of antidumping and countervailing duty petitions against bottom-mount refrigerators from South Korea and an antidumping petition against the same product from Mexico; a copy of the press release is attached and incorporated herein by reference.
| Item 9.01. | Financial Statements and Exhibits. |
| (d) | Exhibits. |
| 99.1 | Press Release dated March 30, 2011 |
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| WHIRLPOOL CORPORATION | ||||||
| Date: March 31, 2011 | By: | /s/ ROBERT J. LAFOREST | ||||
| Name: | Robert J. LaForest | |||||
| Title: | Corporate Secretary | |||||
Exhibit 99.1
CONTACT: Media: 269-923-7405 or Media@Whirlpool.com
Financial: Greg Fritz, 269-923-2641 or Investor_relations@whirlpool.com
WHIRLPOOL CORPORATION FILES ANTIDUMPING PETITION
Petition requests investigation into refrigerators produced in South Korea and Mexico
Benton Harbor, Mich. – March 30, 2011 - Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE: WHR) today filed antidumping and countervailing duty petitions against bottom-mount refrigerators from South Korea and an antidumping petition against the same product from Mexico. Two Korean manufacturers, Samsung Electronics (Samsung) and LG Electronics (LG), export their production to the United States from manufacturing facilities in both Korea and Mexico.
The purpose of these petitions is to establish conditions of fair competition in the U.S. market that will support significant investment and innovation in the production of high-end refrigerators in the United States and the U.S. jobs created by that production. The Whirlpool products affected by this case are made in Amana, Iowa, where Whirlpool employs approximately 2,000 people.
The antidumping petition was filed with the U.S. Department of Commerce and the International Trade Commission and requests an investigation into the production of bottom-mount refrigerators, which are being sold in the United States at substantially less than fair value.
“Whirlpool Corporation is the world leader in appliances because we have invested in our people and in the technologies to give consumers the high-quality products they want for the past 100 years. When foreign producers compete in the U.S. market using unfair trade practices, we have no choice but to take action to defend the integrity of the global trading system, our approximately 23,500 U.S. employees, the U.S. refrigerator industry, and American consumers,” said Marc Bitzer, president, Whirlpool North America. “Dumping is an unfair trade practice used to drive out competitors, which means consumers end up with fewer choices.”
The countervailing duty petition requests an investigation into the substantial unfair subsidies given by the Korean government to Samsung and LG in the past few years, injuring U.S.-based producers as a result. Selling dumped and unfairly subsidized products in the United States that injure the industry are unfair trade practices that violate the U.S. antidumping and countervailing duty laws, which are based on the rules established by the international trading system.
This petition is consistent with the company’s long-standing support for open and fair trade, including the Korea, Colombia and Panama Free Trade Agreements. A strong open trading system must have well-understood processes for addressing conduct that violates trade laws, and availing ourselves of that process is important for maintaining the integrity of the world trade system.
Whirlpool made the decision to take legal action after an extensive investigation showed that Samsung and LG violated U.S. trade laws and, as a result, caused material injury to the U.S. appliance manufacturing industry.
For additional information and to view the petition, please visit http://whirlpoolcorp.com/facts.
About Whirlpool Corporation
Whirlpool Corporation is the world’s leading manufacturer and marketer of major home appliances, with annual sales of more than $18 billion in 2010, 71,000 employees, and 66 manufacturing and technology research centers around the world. The company markets Whirlpool, Maytag, KitchenAid, Jenn-Air, Amana, Brastemp, Consul, Bauknecht and other major brand names to consumers in nearly every country around the world. Additional information about the company can be found at www.whirlpoolcorp.com.
About Whirlpool Corporation’s 100th Anniversary
Founded on November 11, 1911, Whirlpool Corporation’s time- and labor-saving appliance innovations have influenced home and family life during the last century. Driven by the belief that everyone needs a comfortable place to call home, Whirlpool Corporation is focused on improving lives one family, one home at a time.
Whirlpool Additional Information
This document contains forward-looking statements. Actual events or results may differ materially from those statements. For information about the factors that could cause such differences, please refer to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year-ended December 31, 2010, including the information set forth under the caption “Risk Factors.”
# # #