[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 191 (Tuesday, October 1, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51274-51275]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-25109]
[[Page 51274]]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
[A-427-806, A-427-807, A-427-808, A-427-809]
Certain Hot-Rolled Carbon Steel Flat Products, Certain Cold-
Rolled Carbon Steel Flat Products, Certain Corrosion-Resistant Carbon
Steel Flat Products, and Certain Cut-to-Length Carbon Steel Plate From
France; Notice of Final Court Decision and Amended Final Determinations
AGENCY: International Trade Administration, Import Administration,
Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: On May 28, 1996, in the case of Usinor Sacilor v. United
States, Consol. Court No. 93-09-00592-AD (``Usinor Sacilor''), the
United States Court of International Trade (the Court) affirmed the
Department of Commerce's (the Department's) second redeterminations on
remand arising out of the final determinations of sales at less than
fair value in the antidumping duty investigations of certain hot-rolled
carbon steel flat products, certain cold-rolled flat products, certain
corrosion-resistant flat products, and certain cut-to-length steel
plate from France. As there is now a final and conclusive court
decision in this action, we are amending our final determinations in
this matter and will instruct the U.S. Customs Service to change the
cash deposit rate and to liquidate certain past entries of the subject
merchandise.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Edward Easton at (202) 482-1777, Office of AD/CVD Enforcement II,
Import Administration, International Trade Administration, 14th Street
and Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20230.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On July 9, 1993, the Department published its final determinations
of sales at less than fair value in the antidumping duty investigations
of certain hot-rolled carbon steel flat products, certain cold-rolled
carbon steel flat products, certain corrosion-resistant carbon steel
flat products, and certain cut-to-length carbon steel plate from
France. On August 19, 1993, the Department published amended final
determinations.
Subsequently, Usinor Sacilor filed lawsuits with the Court
challenging the final determinations. On December 19, 1994, the Court
remanded the cases to the Department on certain of the challenged
issues. In its opinion, the Court found that the Department had
improperly rejected Usinor Sacilor's revised and corrected product
concordance and resorted to the ``best information available'' (BIA).
The Court directed the Department to accept the concordance. The Court
also found that the Department had improperly used BIA to remedy Usinor
Sacilor's having improperly coded a particular grade of hot-rolled
steel. The Court directed the Department either to use the relevant
sales as coded or to allow Usinor Sacilor to reclassify them. In
addition, the Court rejected the Department's selection of the highest
non-aberrant margin as BIA for the downstream sales of Usinor Scilor's
majority-owned steel service centers. The Court instructed the
Department to use, instead, the ``weighted-average calculated margin.''
Finally, with regard to the downstream sales of mintory-owned steel
service centers, the Court instructed the Department to Determine
whether Usinor Sacilor had operational control over these service
centers. If the Department were to find that Usinor Sacilor did control
them, we were to select the highest non-aberrant margin as BIA in a
manner consistent with the Court's ruling in National Steel Corp. v.
United States, Slip. Op. 94-194 (December 13, 1994). On the other hand,
if the Department were to determine that Usinor Sacilor did not control
the steel service centers in which it had a minority ownership, we were
to apply the ``weighted-average calculated margin'' as BIA.
On remand, after finding that Usinor Sacilor lacked operational
control over the minority-owned service centers, the Department used
the weighted-average calculated margin as BIA for the downstream sales
of both the majority-and minority-owned steel service centers. This
weighted-average calculated BIA margin consisted of individual price-
to-price margins, price-to-constructed value margins, and unchallenged
BIA margins. The Department also accepted Usinor Sacilor's revised and
corrected product concordance and allowed the company to correct the
coding of the miscoded grade of steel. On February 17, 1995, the
Department filed its required remand results with the Court.
On November 9, 1995, the Court remanded the Department's
redeterminations on remand. In this remand opinion, the Court explained
that it had intended that the Department use a weighted-average
calculated margin consisting only of price-to-price and price-to-
constructed value margins, not including the unchallenged margins based
on BIA.
The Department submitted the recalculated weighted-average margins
to the Court on January 11, 1996.
On May 28, 1996, the Court upheld the Department's second set of
redeterminations. See Usinor Sacilor v. United States, Consol. Ct No.
93-09-00592-AD, Slip Op. 96-84 (CIT May 28, 1996).
On June 21, 1996, the Department published a notice of court
decision pursuant to 19 U.S.C. 1516e(e). Notice of Court Decision and
Suspension of Liquidation, 61 FR 31921. In that notice, we stated that
we would suspend liquidation until there was a ``conclusive'' decision
in the action. Since that notice, the period to appeal has expired and
no appeal was filed. Therefore, as there is now a final and conclusive
court decision in this action, we are amending our final
determinations.
Amendment to Final Determinations
Pursuant to 19 U.S.C. 1516a(e), we are now amending the final
determinations in certain hot-rolled carbon steel flat products,
certain cold-rolled steel flat products, certain corrosion-resistant
carbon steel flat products, and certain cut-to-length steel plate from
France.
The recalculated weighted-average dumping margins for Usinor
Sacilor and for the ``All Others'' rate are as follows:
Certain Hot-Rolled Carbon Steel Products.........................25.80%
Certain Cold-Rolled Carbon Steel Products........................44.52%
Certain Corrosion-Resistant Carbon Steel Products................29.41%
Certain Cut-to-Length Carbon Steel Plate.........................52.76%
In August 1993, the U.S. International Trade Commission (the
Commission) determined that an industry in the United States was not
materially injured or threatened with material injury, and that the
establishment of an industry in the United States was not materially
retarded, by reason of imports of certain hot-rolled carbon steel flat
products, certain cold-rolled carbon steel flat products, or certain
cut-to-length carbon steel plate from France. These negative
determinations had the effect of terminating those investigations and
no antidumping duty orders were issued concerning those products.
The Commission also determines that an industry in the United
States was materially injured or threatened with material injury by
reason of imports of certain corrosion-resistant carbon steel products
from France. As a consequence of the Commission's affirmative
determination, these products were subject to an antidumping order. The
Department will instruct the U.S.
[[Page 51275]]
Customs Service to change the appropriate cash deposit requirements in
accordance with the recalculated rate for corrosion-resistant steel
products and to proceed with liquidation of the subject merchandise
entered on or after April 6, 1993, and before August 17, 1993. All
other entries currently are enjoined from liquidation by a preliminary
injunction issued by the Court in Inland Steel Industries v. United
States, Consol. Court No. 93-09-00567-CVD.
Dated: September 23, 1996.
Robert S. LaRussa,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 96-25109 Filed 9-30-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-M