[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 154 (Tuesday, August 11, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42825-42827]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-21531]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration
[C-559-001]


Preliminary Results of Countervailing Duty Administrative Review; 
Certain Refrigeration Compressors From the Republic of Singapore

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

EFFECTIVE DATE: August 11, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Maria K. Dybczak or Rick Johnson, Office of Antidumping/Countervailing 
Duty Enforcement, Group III, Office IX, Import Administration, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, Room 1874, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, 
N.W., Washington, D.C. 20230; telephone (202) 482-1398, or 482-3818, 
respectively.

SUMMARY: In response to requests by the Government of the Republic of 
Singapore (GOS), Matsushita Refrigeration Industries (Singapore) Pte. 
Ltd. (MARIS), Asia Matsushita Electric (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. (AMS), and 
the petitioner, Tecumseh Products Company (Tecumseh), the Department of 
Commerce (the Department) is conducting an administrative review of the 
agreement suspending the countervailing duty investigation on certain 
refrigeration compressors from the Republic of Singapore. This review 
covers the GOS, MARIS, and AMS. AMS was the sole exporter of the 
subject merchandise to the United States during the period April 1, 
1996, through March 31, 1997, the period of review (POR). We 
preliminarily determine that the signatories have complied with the 
terms of the suspension agreement during the POR.
    Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary 
results. Parties who submit arguments in this proceeding are requested 
to submit with their argument (1) a statement of the issue and (2) a 
brief summary of the argument.

Applicable Statute

    Unless otherwise indicated, all citations to the Tariff Act of 
1930, as amended (``the Act''), are references to the provisions 
effective January 1, 1995, the effective date of the amendments made to 
the Act by the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (``URAA''). In addition, 
unless otherwise indicated, all citations to the Department's 
regulations are to the regulations set forth at 19 C.F.R. part 351 (62 
FR 27296, May 19, 1997).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On November 25, 1997, the GOS, MARIS, and AMS, requested an 
administrative review of the agreement suspending the countervailing 
duty investigation on certain refrigeration compressors from the 
Republic of Singapore (Certain Refrigeration Compressors from the 
Republic of Singapore: Suspension of Countervailing Duty Investigation, 
(``Refrigeration Compressors'') 48 FR 51167, 51170 (November 7, 1983)). 
On

[[Page 42826]]

November 26, 1997, petitioner also requested an administrative review 
of the agreement suspending the countervailing duty investigation on 
certain refrigeration compressors from the Republic of Singapore. We 
initiated the review on December 23, 1997 (Initiation of Antidumping 
and Countervailing Duty Administrative Reviews, 62 FR 67044 (December 
23, 1997)). The Department is now conducting this review in accordance 
with section 751 of the Tariff Act and 19 CFR 351.221. The Department 
issued a questionnaire on January 23, 1998, and received a joint 
questionnaire response from the GOS, MARIS, and AMS, on March 23, 1998. 
The Department sent out two supplemental questionnaires on April 10, 
and May 8, 1998, and received joint supplemental questionnaire 
responses to each questionnaire on April 24, and May 22, 1998, 
respectively.

Scope of the Review

    Imports covered by this review are shipments of hermetic 
refrigeration compressors rated not over one-quarter horsepower from 
Singapore. This merchandise is currently classified under Harmonized 
Tariff Schedule (HTS) item number 8414.30.40. The HTS item number is 
provided for convenience and Customs purposes. The written description 
remains dispositive.
    The review period is April 1, 1996 through March 31, 1997, and 
includes 2 programs. The review covers one producer and one exporter of 
the subject merchandise, MARIS and AMS, respectively. These two 
companies, along with the GOS, are the signatories to the suspension 
agreement.
    Under the terms of the suspension agreement, the GOS agrees to 
offset completely the amount of the net bounty or grant determined to 
exist by the Department in this proceeding with respect to the subject 
merchandise. The offset entails the collection by the GOS of an export 
charge applicable to the subject merchandise exported on or after the 
effective date of the agreement. See Refrigeration Compressors, 48 FR 
51167, 51170 (November 7, 1983).

Analysis of Programs

(1) The Economic Expansion Incentives Act--Part VI

    The Production for Export Programme under Part VI of the Economic 
Expansion Incentives Act allows a 90-percent tax exemption on a 
company's export profit if the GOS designates a company as an export 
enterprise. In the investigation, the Department preliminarily found 
this program to be countervailable because ``this tax exemption is 
provided only to certified export enterprises.'' See Preliminary 
Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination: Certain Refrigeration 
Compressors from the Republic of Singapore, 48 FR 39109, 39110 (August 
29, 1983). MARIS is designated as an export enterprise and used this 
tax exemption during the period of review. AMS was not designated an 
export enterprise under Part VI of this Economic Expansion Incentives 
Act for this period of review.
    According to the Export Enterprise Cettificate awarded to MARIS in 
a letter dated May 12, 1981, MARIS is to receive this benefit on the 
production of compressors, electrical parts and accessories for 
refrigerators, and plastic refrigerators. To calculate the benefit, we 
divided the tax savings claimed by MARIS under this program by the 
f.o.b. value of total exports of products receiving the benefit for the 
period of review.
    MARIS' response to the Department's countervailing duty 
questionnaire for this review shows that MARIS deducted export charges 
levied pursuant to the suspension agreement in arriving at an adjusted 
profit figure, which was then used to calculate exempt export profit 
for the review period. In the 90-91 administrative review, the 
Department determined that the amount of the export charge deduction 
must be added ``back to MARIS' export profit in calculating MARIS' tax 
savings in order to offset the deduction of the export charges in the 
review period.'' See Preliminary Results of Countervailing Duty Review: 
Certain Refrigeration Compressors from Singapore, 57 FR 31175 (July 14, 
1992), affirmed in Final Results of Countervailing Duty Review: Certain 
Refrigeration Compressors from Singapore, 57 FR 46539 (October 9, 
1992). Therefore, as the Department did in the 92-93 administrative 
review, in calculating the benefit from this program, we have added 
back this deduction, as we have since the 92-93 period of review. On 
this basis, we preliminarily determine the benefit from this program 
during the review period to be 0.56 percent of the f.o.b. value of the 
merchandise.

(2) Financing Through the Monetary Authority of Singapore

    Under the terms of the suspension agreement, MARIS and AMS agreed 
not to appy for or receive any financing provided by the rediscount 
facility of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) for shipments of 
the subject merchandise to the United States. In their response, 
respondents reported that, during the period of review, neither MARIS 
nor AMS received any financing through the MAS on subject merchandise 
exported to the United States. Therefore, we preliminarily determine 
that both companies have complied with this clause of the agreement.

Preliminary Results of Review

    The suspension agreement states that the GOS will offset completely 
with an export charge the net bounty or grant calculated by the 
Department. We preliminarily determine that the signatories have 
complied with the terms of the suspension agreement, including the 
payment of the provisional export charges in effect for the period 
April 1, 1996 through March 31, 1997. We also preliminarily determine 
the net bounty or grant to be 0.56 percent of the f.o.b. value of the 
merchandise for the April 1, 1996 through March 31, 1997 review period.
    Following the methodology outlined in section B.4 of the agreement, 
the Department preliminarily determines that, for the period April 1, 
1996 through March 31, 1997, a negative adjustment may be made to the 
provisional export charge rate in effect. The adjustments will equal 
the difference between the provisional rate in effect during the review 
period and the rate determined in this review, plus interest. The 
provisional rate, established in the notice of the final results of the 
10th administrative reviews of the suspension agreement (See Certain 
Refrigeration Compressors from the Republic of Singapore: Final Results 
of Countervailing Duty Administrative Review, 61 FR 10315 (March 13, 
1996)) was 3.00 percent. This rate was in effect from April 1, 1996 
through August 27, 1996. The provisional rate, established in the 
notice of the final results of the 11th administrative reviews of the 
suspension agreement (See Certain Refrigeration Compressors from the 
Republic of Singapore: Final Results of Countervailing Duty 
Administrative Review, 61 FR 44296 (August 28, 1996)) was 2.22 percent. 
This rate was in effect from August 28, 1996 through March 31, 1997. If 
the Department's preliminary results do not change in the final, we 
will notify the GOS that it may refund or credit, in accordance with 
section B.4.c of the agreement, the difference between the two 
provision rates noted above and the 0.56 percent, plus interest, 
calculated in accordance with section 778(b) of the Tariff Act, within 
30 days of notification by the Department. The Department will notify

[[Page 42827]]

the GOS of these adjustments after publication of the final results of 
this review.
    Furthermore, if the final results of this review remain the same as 
these preliminary results, the Department intends to notify the GOS 
that the provisional export charge rate on all exports to the United 
States with Outward Declarations filed on or after the date of 
publication of the final results of this administrative review shall be 
0.56 percent of the f.o.b value of the merchandise.
    The agreement can remain in force only as long as shipments from 
the signatories account for at least 85 percent of imports of the 
subject refrigeration compressors into the United States. Our 
information indicates that the two signatory companies accounted for 
100 percent of imports into the United States from Singapore of this 
merchandise during the review period.
    Parties to the proceeding may request disclosure within 5 days of 
the date of publication of this notice. Any interested party may 
request a hearing within 10 days of publication. Case briefs and/or 
written comments from interested parties may be submitted no later than 
30 days after the date of publication. Rebuttal briefs and rebuttals to 
written comments, limited to issues raised in the case briefs and 
comments, may be filed not later than 37 days after the date of 
publication of this notice. Any hearing, if requested, will be held 44 
days after the date of publication, or the first workday thereafter. 
The Department will publish the final results of this administrative 
review including the results of its analysis of issues raised in any 
such written comments or at a hearing.
    These requirements, when imposed, shall remain in effect until 
publication of the final results of the next administrative review. 
This administrative review and this notice are in accordance with 
section 751(a)(1) of the Act (19 U.S.C. 1675(a)(1)) and 19 CFR 351.221.

    Dated: August 3, 1998.
Robert S. LaRussa,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 98-21531 Filed 8-10-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-M