[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 133 (Wednesday, July 12, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35896-35898]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-17045]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
[A-428-810]


High-Tenacity Rayon Filament Yarn From Germany; Preliminary 
Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review

AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty 
Administrative Review.

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SUMMARY: In response to a request by the respondent, Akzo Nobel Faser 
A.G. and Akzo Nobel Fibers, Inc. (collectively, Akzo), a producer/
exporter of high-tenacity rayon filament yarn from Germany, the 
Department of Commerce (the Department) has conducted an administrative 
review of the antidumping duty order on high-tenacity rayon filament 
yarn from Germany. The review covers one manufacturer/exporter of this 
merchandise to the United States, and the period June 1, 1993 through 
May 31, 1994.
    We have preliminarily determined that no U.S. sales have been made 
below the foreign market value (FMV). If these preliminary results are 
adopted in our final results of administrative review, we will instruct 
the U.S. Customs Service (Customs Service) not to assess antidumping 
duties on subject merchandise entered during the period of review 
(POR).
    Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary 
results.

EFFECTIVE DATE: July 12, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Matthew Blaskovich or Zev Primor, 
Office of Antidumping Compliance, Import Administration, International 
Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and 
Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20230; telephone (202) 482-
5831/4114.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On June 30, 1992, the Department published in the Federal Register 
the antidumping duty order on high-tenacity rayon filament yarn from 
Germany (57 FR 29062). On June 7, 1994, the Department published in the 
Federal Register a notice of ``Opportunity to Request an Administrative 
Review'' of the antidumping order on high-tenacity rayon filament yarn 
from Germany (59 FR 29441). In accordance with 19 CFR 353.22(a)(2), on 
June 30, 1994, Akzo requested an administrative review of the 
antidumping duty order covering the period June 1, 1993 through May 31, 
1994. We published a notice of initiation of the antidumping duty 
administrative review on July 15, 1994 (59 FR 36160).

Applicable Statute and Regulations

    The Department is conducting this review in accordance with section 
751(a) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Unless 
otherwise indicated, all citations to the statute and to the 
Department's regulations are in reference to the provisions as they 
existed on December 31, 1994.

Scope of the Review

    The product covered by this administrative review is high-tenacity 
rayon filament yarn from Germany. During the review period, such 
merchandise was classifiable under Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) 
item number 5403.10.30.40. High-tenacity rayon filament yarn is a 
multifilament single yarn of viscose rayon with a twist of five turns 
or more per meter, having a denier of 1100 or greater, and a tenacity 
greater than 35 centinewtons per tax. The HTS item numbers are provided 
for convenience and Customs purposes. The written description remains 
dispositive as to the scope of the product coverage. This review covers 
Akzo and the period June 1, 1993, through May 31, 1994.

United States Price

    In calculating USP, the Department treated Akzo's sales as purchase 
price, as defined in section 772 of the Act. There were no exporter's 
sale price (ESP) sales during the POR.
    Purchase price sales were based on a packed f.o.b. price to 
unrelated purchasers in the United States. We made adjustments, where 
applicable, for foreign brokerage and handling, foreign inland freight 
(post-sale), ocean freight, U.S. duty, U.S. inland freight, foreign 
inland insurance, and U.S. brokerage. In 

[[Page 35897]]
addition, we adjusted USP for taxes in accordance with our practice 
outlined in Silicomanganese from Venezuela, Preliminary Determination 
of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, 59 FR 31204 (at 31205), June 17, 
1994.
    No other adjustments to USP were claimed or allowed.

Foreign Market Value

    In accordance with section 353.48 of the Department's regulations, 
we determined that Akzo's sales of subject merchandise in the home 
market serve as a viable basis for calculating FMV.
    Based on findings in the previous review and the less-than-fair-
value (LTFV) investigation that home market sales of the subject 
merchandise were made by Akzo at prices below the cost of production 
(COP), the Department conducted a cost investigation in this 
administrative review. In accordance with section 773(b) of the Act, we 
examined whether the home market sales of each model were made below 
their COP in substantial quantities over an extended period of time, 
and whether such sales were made at prices which would permit recovery 
of all costs within a reasonable period of time in the normal course of 
trade. We calculated Akzo's COP on a model-specific basis as the sum of 
all reported materials costs, labor expenses, factory overhead, selling 
expenses, net interest expense, and general and administrative expenses 
in accordance with 19 CFR 353.51. We compared COP to home market 
prices, net of movement charges, third-party payments, packing, 
rebates, and discounts. Based upon this comparison, we found that there 
were sales below cost.
    For each model where less than 10 percent, by quantity, of the home 
market sales during the POR were made at prices below the COP, we 
included all sales of that model in the computation of FMV. For each 
model where 10 percent or more, but less than 90 percent, of the home 
market sales during the POR were priced below the merchandise's COP, we 
excluded from the calculation of FMV those home market sales which were 
priced below the merchandise's COP, provided that these below-cost 
sales were made over an extended period of time. For each model where 
90 percent or more of the home market sales during the POR were priced 
below the COP, we disregarded all sales of that model from our 
calculation of FMV and used the constructed value (CV) of those models 
as described below.
    In order to determine whether below-cost sales were made over an 
extended period of time, we compared the number of months in which 
below-cost sales occurred for each product to the number of months 
during the POR in which that model was sold. If the product was sold in 
fewer than three months during the POR, we did not exclude below-cost 
sales unless there were below-cost sales in each month of sale. If a 
product was sold in three or more months, we did not exclude the below-
cost sales unless there were below-cost sales in at least three of the 
months during the POR.
    Akzo has not submitted information indicating that any of its sales 
below cost were made at prices which would have permitted ``recovery of 
all costs within a reasonable period of time in the normal course of 
trade,'' as required by section 773 (b)(2) of the Act. Therefore, we 
have no basis for concluding that the costs of production of such sales 
have been recovered within a reasonable period of time, and have 
disregarded Akzo's below-cost sales made over an extended period of 
time.
    We used CV as the basis for FMV in instances where there were 
insufficient sales (less than 10%) of the comparison home-market model 
at or above the COP. We calculated CV in accordance with section 773(e) 
of the Act. We summed the cost of materials, total selling expenses, 
general and administrative expenses, net interest expenses, and imputed 
credit. In our calculation of the selling, general, and administrative 
expenses (SG&A), where the sum of the actual selling expenses and 
general and administrative expenses was less than the statutory minimum 
of 10 percent of the cost of manufacturing (COM), we calculated SG&A as 
10 percent of the COM. Where the actual profits were less than the 
statutory minimum of eight percent of COM plus SG&A, we calculated 
profit as eight percent of the sum of COM plus SG&A. We adjusted CV for 
selling, credit, and packing expenses.
    For those models that had sufficient above-cost sales, we 
calculated FMV using home market prices based on the f.o.b. price to 
unrelated purchasers. Where applicable, we made adjustments for inland 
freight (post-sale), inland insurance, packing, discounts, other 
discounts, credit, interest revenue, rebates, and third party payments. 
We made a circumstance-of-sale adjustment for differences in technical 
services expenses and credit. We adjusted FMV for taxes in accordance 
with our tax adjustment methodology as outlined above. We also made, 
where applicable, adjustments for differences in the physical 
characteristics of the merchandise.

Preliminary Results of Review

    As a result of our review, we preliminarily determine the dumping 
margin to be:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                     Time       Margin  
                  Manufacturer                      period    (percent) 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Akzo Nobel Faser A.G., Akzo Nobel Fibers, Inc.                          
 (collectively, Akzo)...........................    6/1/93-             
                                                    5/31/94         0.00
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Parties to this proceeding may request disclosure within five days 
of publication of this notice and any interested party may request a 
hearing within 10 days of publication. Any hearing, if requested, will 
be held 44 days after the date of publication, or the first workday 
thereafter. Interested parties may submit case briefs and/or written 
comments not later than 30 days after the date of publication. Rebuttal 
briefs and rebuttals to written comments, limited to issues raised in 
such briefs or comments, may be filed not later than 37 days after the 
date of publication. The Department will publish a notice of the final 
results of this administrative review, which will include the results 
of its analysis of issues raised in any such briefs or comments.
    The Department shall determine, and the Customs Service shall 
assess, antidumping duties on all appropriate entries. The Department 
will issue appraisement instructions directly to the Customs Service.
    Furthermore, the following deposit requirements will be effective 
upon completion of the final results of this administrative review for 
all shipments of high-tenacity rayon filament yarn from Germany 
entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the 
publication date of the final results of this administrative review, as 
provided by section 751(a)(1) of the Act: (1) The cash deposit rate for 
Akzo will be that established in the final results of this review; (2) 
For previously reviewed or investigated companies not covered in this 
review, the cash deposit rate will continue to be the company-specific 
rate published for the most recent period; (3) If the exporter is not a 
firm covered in this review, a prior review, or the original LTFV 
investigation, but the manufacturer is, the cash deposit rate will be 
the rate established for the most recent period for the manufacturer of 
the merchandise; (4) If neither the exporter nor the manufacturer is a 
firm covered in this or any previous review, the cash deposit rate will 
be the ``all 

[[Page 35898]]
others rate'' of 24.58 percent established in the LTFV investigation.
    This notice serves as a preliminary reminder to importers of their 
responsibility under 19 CFR 353.26 to file a certificate regarding the 
reimbursement of antidumping duties prior to liquidation of the 
relevant entries during this review period. Failure to comply with this 
requirement could result in the Secretary's presumption that 
reimbursement of antidumping duties occurred and the subsequent 
assessment of double antidumping duties.
    This notice also serves as a preliminary reminder to parties 
subject to administrative protective orders (APOs) of their 
responsibility concerning the disposition of proprietary information 
disclosed under APO in accordance with 19 CFR 353.34(d). Timely written 
notification of return/destruction of APO materials or conversion to 
judicial protective order is hereby requested. Failure to comply with 
the regulations and the terms of an APO is a sanctionable violation.
    This administrative review and notice are in accordance with 
section 751(a)(1) of the Act (19 U.S.C. 1675(a)(1)) and 19 CFR 353.22.

    Dated: July 5, 1995.
Susan G. Esserman,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 95-17045 Filed 7-11-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P