[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 217 (Wednesday, November 10, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61270-61275]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-29459]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration
[A-791-807]


Notice of Preliminary Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair 
Value: Certain Cold-Rolled Flat-Rolled Carbon-Quality Steel Products 
From South Africa

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

EFFECTIVE DATE: November 10, 1999.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carrie Blozy, Import Administration, 
International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th 
Street and Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: 
(202) 482-0165.

[[Page 61271]]

The Applicable Statute

    Unless otherwise indicated, all citations to the statute are 
references to the provisions effective January 1, 1995, the effective 
date of the amendments made to the Tariff Act of 1930 (``the Act'') by 
the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (``URAA''). In addition, unless 
otherwise indicated, all references to the Department's regulations are 
to the provisions codified at 19 CFR Part 351 (1998).

Preliminary Determination

    We preliminarily determine that certain cold-rolled flat-rolled 
carbon-quality steel products (``cold-rolled steel products'') from 
South Africa are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States 
at less than fair value (``LTFV''), as provided in section 733 of the 
Act. The estimated margins of sales at LTFV are shown in the 
``Suspension of Liquidation'' section of this notice.

Case History

    Since the initiation of this investigation (see Notice of 
Initiation of Antidumping Investigations: Certain Cold-Rolled Flat-
Rolled Carbon-Quality Steel Products from Argentina, Brazil, the 
People's Republic of China, Indonesia, Japan, the Russian Federation, 
Slovakia, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, and Venezuela, 64 FR 
34194 (June 25, 1999) (``Initiation Notice'')), the following events 
have occurred:
    On June 21, 1998, the Department invited interested parties to 
submit comments regarding model matching. On June 28, 1999, Bethlehem 
Steel Corporation, Gulf States Steel, Ispat Inland Steel, LTV Steel 
Company Inc., National Steel Corporation, Steel Dynamics, U.S. Steel 
Group (a unit of USX Corporation), Weirton Steel Corporation, and 
United Steelworkers of America, (collectively, ``petitioners''), stated 
that we should revise the category ``annealing'' to account more 
precisely for important differences in processing, pricing, functions, 
and customer expectations. In addition, petitioners recommended that 
the Department include an additional category under ``Quality,'' for 
motor lamination steels.
    In their petition, petitioners identified Iscor Limited (``Iscor'') 
as a possible producer and exporter of cold-rolled steel from South 
Africa. On June 22, 1999, the Department issued the Section A 
antidumping questionnaire to Iscor, the only known South African 
exporter of subject merchandise. On July 9, 1999, the Department issued 
the Section B, C, D, and E antidumping questionnaire to Iscor. Iscor 
did not respond to the Department's antidumping questionnaire (see 
``Facts Available'' section below).
    On July 16, 1999, the United States International Trade Commission 
(``the ITC'') preliminarily determined that there is a reasonable 
indication that imports of the products under this investigation are 
materially injuring the United States industry.
    The Department set aside a period for all interested parties to 
raise issues regarding product coverage. From July through October 
1999, the Department received responses from a number of parties 
including importers, respondents, consumers, and petitioners, aimed at 
clarifying the scope of the investigation. See Memorandum to Joseph A. 
Spetrini, November 1, 1999 (``Scope Memorandum'') for a list of all 
persons submitting comments and a discussion of all scope comments. 
There are several scope exclusion requests for products which are 
currently covered by the scope of this investigation that are still 
under consideration by the Department. These items are considered to be 
within the scope for this preliminary determination; however, these 
requests will be reconsidered for the final determination. See Scope 
Memorandum.

Period of Investigation

    The period of investigation is April 1, 1998 through March 31, 
1999.

Scope of Investigation

    For purposes of this investigation, the products covered are 
certain cold-rolled (cold-reduced) flat-rolled carbon-quality steel 
products, neither clad, plated, nor coated with metal, but whether or 
not annealed, painted, varnished, or coated with plastics or other non-
metallic substances, both in coils, 0.5 inch wide or wider, (whether or 
not in successively superimposed layers and/or otherwise coiled, such 
as spirally oscillated coils), and also in straight lengths, which, if 
less than 4.75 mm in thickness having a width that is 0.5 inch or 
greater and that measures at least 10 times the thickness; or, if of a 
thickness of 4.75 mm or more, having a width exceeding 150 mm and 
measuring at least twice the thickness. The products described above 
may be rectangular, square, circular or other shape and include 
products of either rectangular or non-rectangular cross-section where 
such cross-section is achieved subsequent to the rolling process (i.e., 
products which have been ``worked after rolling'')--for example, 
products which have been beveled or rounded at the edges.
    Specifically included in this scope are vacuum degassed, fully 
stabilized (commonly referred to as interstitial-free (``IF'')) steels, 
high strength low alloy (``HSLA'') steels, and motor lamination steels. 
IF steels are recognized as low carbon steels with micro-alloying 
levels of elements such as titanium and/or niobium added to stabilize 
carbon and nitrogen elements. HSLA steels are recognized as steels with 
micro-alloying levels of elements such as chromium, copper, niobium, 
titanium, vanadium, and molybdenum. Motor lamination steels contain 
micro-alloying levels of elements such as silicon and aluminum.
    Steel products included in the scope of this investigation, 
regardless of definitions in the Harmonized Tariff Schedules of the 
United States (``HTSUS''), are products in which: (1) Iron 
predominates, by weight, over each of the other contained elements; (2) 
the carbon content is 2 percent or less, by weight, and; (3) none of 
the elements listed below exceeds the quantity, by weight, respectively 
indicated:

1.80 percent of manganese, or
2.25 percent of silicon, or
1.00 percent of copper, or
0.50 percent of aluminum, or
1.25 percent of chromium, or
0.30 percent of cobalt, or
0.40 percent of lead, or
1.25 percent of nickel, or
0.30 percent of tungsten, or
0.10 percent of molybdenum, or
0.10 percent of niobium (also called columbium), or
0.15 percent of vanadium, or
0.15 percent of zirconium.

    All products that meet the written physical description, and in 
which the chemistry quantities do not exceed any one of the noted 
element levels listed above, are within the scope of this investigation 
unless specifically excluded. The following products, by way of 
example, are outside and/or specifically excluded from the scope of 
this investigation:

 SAE grades (formerly also called AISI grades) above 2300;
 Ball bearing steels, as defined in the HTSUS;
 Tool steels, as defined in the HTSUS;
 Silico-manganese steel, as defined in the HTSUS;
 Silicon-electrical steels, as defined in the HTSUS, that are 
grain-oriented;
 Silicon-electrical steels, as defined in the HTSUS, that are 
not grain-oriented and that have a silicon level exceeding 2.25 
percent;
 All products (proprietary or otherwise) based on an alloy ASTM 
specification (sample specifications: ASTM A506, A507);

[[Page 61272]]

 Silicon-electrical steels, as defined in the HTSUS, that are 
not grain-oriented and that have a silicon level less than 2.25 
percent, and
    (a) fully-processed, with a core loss of less than 0.14 watts/pound 
per mil (.001 inches), or
    (b) semi-processed, with core loss of less than 0.085 watts/pound 
per mil (.001 inches);
 Certain shadow mask steel, which is aluminum killed cold-
rolled steel coil that is open coil annealed, has an ultra-flat, 
isotropic surface, and which meets the following characteristics:
    Thickness: 0.001 to 0.010 inches
    Width: 15 to 32 inches

                          Chemical Composition
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Element................................................                C
Weight %...............................................         <0.002%
------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Certain flapper valve steel, which is hardened and tempered, 
surface polished, and which meets the following characteristics:
    Thickness: 1.0 mm
    Width: 152.4 mm

                                                                  Chemical Composition
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Element...........................  C                       Si                      Mn                      P                      S
Weight %..........................  0.90-1.05               0.15-0.35               0.30-0.50               0.03        0.006
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


                          Mechanical Properties
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tensile Strength.......................  162 Kgf/mm\2\
Hardness...............................  475 Vickers hardness
                                          number
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                           Physical Properties
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Flatness...............................  <0.2% of nominal strip width
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Microstructure: Completely free from decarburization. Carbides are 
spheroidal and fine within 1% to 4% (area percentage) and are 
undissolved in the uniform tempered martensite.

                         Non-Metallic Inclusion
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Area
                                                            percentage
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sulfide Inclusion.......................................  0.0
                                                                      4%
Oxide Inclusion.........................................  0.0
                                                                      5%
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Compressive Stress: 10 to 40 Kgf/mm\2\.

                            Surface Roughness
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Roughness
                     Thickness (mm)                        (m)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
t0.209.......................................  Rz0
                                                                      .5
0.2090.310.................................  Rz0
                                                                      .6
0.3100.440.................................  Rz0
                                                                      .7
0.4400.560.................................  Rz0
                                                                      .8
0.5601
                                                                      .0
------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Certain ultra thin gauge steel strip, which meets the 
following characteristics:
    Thickness: 0.100 mm 7%
    Width: 100 to 600 mm

                                                                  Chemical Composition
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Element........................  C                    Mn                  P                   S                   Al                  Fe
Weight %.......................  0.07      0.2-0.5             0.05     0.05     0.07     Balance
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


                          Mechanical Properties
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hardness...............................  Full Hard (Hv 180 minimum)
Total Elongation.......................  <3%
Tensile Strength.......................  600 to 850 N/mm\2\
------------------------------------------------------------------------


[[Page 61273]]


                           Physical Properties
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Surface Finish.........................  0.3 micron
Camber (in 2.0 m)......................  <3.0 mm
Flatness (in 2.0 m)....................  0.5 mm
Edge Burr..............................  < 0.01 mm greater than
                                          thickness
Coil Set (in 1.0 m)....................  < 75.0 mm
------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Certain silicon steel, which meets the following 
characteristics:
    Thickness: 0.024 inches .0015 inches
    Width: 33 to 45.5 inches

                                                                  Chemical Composition
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Element........................  C                    Mn                  P                   S                   Si                  Al
Min. Weight %..................  ...................  ..................  ..................  ..................  0.65                ..................
Max. Weight %..................  0.004                0.4                 0.09                0.009               ..................  0.4
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


                          Mechanical Properties
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hardness...............................  B 60-75 (AIM 65)
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                           Physical Properties
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Finish.................................  Smooth (30-60 microinches)
Gamma Crown (in 5 inches)..............  0.0005 inches, start measuring
                                          \1/4\ inch from slit edge
Flatness...............................  20 I-UNIT max.
Coating................................  C3A-.08A max. (A2 coating
                                          acceptable)
Camber (in any 10 feet)................  \1/16\ inch
Coil Size I.D..........................  20 inches
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                           Magnetic Properties
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Core Loss (1.5T/60 Hz) NAAS............  3.8 Watts/Pound max.
Permeability (1.5T/60 Hz) NAAS.........  1700 gauss/oersted typical
                                         1500 minimum
------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Certain aperture mask steel, which has an ultra-flat surface 
flatness and which meets the following characteristics:
    Thickness: 0.025 to 0.245 mm
    Width: 381-1000 mm

                                              Chemical Composition
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Element.......................  C................  N                                           Al
Weight %......................  < 0.01...........  0.004 to 0.007                              < 0.007
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Certain tin mill black plate, annealed and temper-rolled, 
continuously cast, which meets the following characteristics:

                                                                  Chemical Composition
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Element......................  C            Mn           P           S         Si          Al        As          Cu          B           N
Min. Weight %................  0.02         0.20         ..........  ........  ..........  0.03      ..........  ..........  ..........  0.003
Max. Weight %................  0.06         0.40         0.02        0.023     0.03        0.08      0.02        0.08        ..........  0.008 (Aiming
                                                                      (Aiming               (Aiming                                       0.005)
                                                                      0.018                 0.05)
                                                                      Max.)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Non-metallic Inclusions: Examination with the S.E.M. shall not 
reveal individual oxides > 1 micron (0.000039 inches) and inclusion 
groups or clusters shall not exceed 5 microns (0.000197 inches) in 
length.
    Surface Treatment as follows:
    The surface finish shall be free of defects (digs, scratches, pits, 
gouges, slivers, etc.) and suitable for nickel plating.

                                                 Surface Finish
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                        Roughness, RA Microinches (Micrometers)
                                     ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                 Aim                      Min.                     Max.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Extra Bright........................  5 (0.1)                   0 (0)                    7 (0.2)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Certain full hard tin mill black plate, continuously cast, 
which meets the following characteristics:

[[Page 61274]]



                                                                  Chemical Composition
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Element......................  C            Mn           P           S         Si          Al        As          Cu          B           N
Min. Weight %................  0.02         0.20         ..........  ........  ..........  0.03      ..........  ..........  ..........  0.003
Max. Weight %................  0.06         0.40         0.02        0.023     0.03        0.08      0.02        0.08        ..........  0.008 (Aiming
                                                                      (Aiming               (Aiming                                       0.005)
                                                                      0.018                 0.05)
                                                                      Max.)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Non-metallic Inclusions: Examination with the S.E.M. shall not 
reveal individual oxides > 1 micron (0.000039 inches) and inclusion 
groups or clusters shall not exceed 5 microns (0.000197 inches) in 
length.
    Surface Treatment as follows:
    The surface finish shall be free of defects (digs, scratches, pits, 
gouges, slivers, etc.) and suitable for nickel plating.

                                                 Surface Finish
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                        Roughness, RA Microinches (Micrometers)
                                     ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                 Aim                      Min.                     Max.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Stone Finish........................  16 (0.4)                  8 (0.2)                  24 (0.6)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Certain ``blued steel'' coil (also known as ``steamed blue 
steel'' or ``blue oxide'') with a thickness and size of 0.38 mm  x  940 
mm  x  coil, and with a bright finish;
 Certain cold-rolled steel sheet, which meets the following 
characteristics:
    Thickness (nominal):  0.019 inches
    Width: 35 to 60 inches

                                              Chemical Composition
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Element.............................  C                         O                        B
Max. Weight %.......................  0.004
Min. Weight %.......................  ........................  0.010                    0.012
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Certain band saw steel, which meets the following 
characteristics:
    Thickness:  1.31 mm
    Width:  80 mm

                                                                                      Chemical Composition
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Element........................  C                      Si                     Mn                     P                      S                      Cr                     Ni
Weight.........................  %1.2 to 1.3            0.15 to 0.35           0.20 to 0.35            0.03        0.007      0.3 to 0.5              0.25
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Other properties:
    Carbide: fully spheroidized having > 80% of carbides, which are 
 0.003 mm and uniformly dispersed
    Surface finish: bright finish free from pits, scratches, rust, 
cracks, or seams
    Smooth edges
    Edge camber (in each 300 mm of length):  7 mm arc height
    Cross bow (per inch of width): 0.015 mm max.
    The merchandise subject to this investigation is typically 
classified in the HTSUS at subheadings: 7209.15.0000, 7209.16.0030, 
7209.16.0060, 7209.16.0090, 7209.17.0030, 7209.17.0060, 7209.17.0090, 
7209.18.1530, 7209.18.1560, 7209.18.2550, 7209.18.6000. 7209.25.0000, 
7209.26.0000, 7209.27.0000, 7209.28.0000, 7209.90.0000, 7210.70.3000, 
7210.90.9000, 7211.23.1500, 7211.23.2000, 7211.23.3000, 7211.23.4500, 
7211.23.6030, 7211.23.6060, 7211.23.6085, 7211.29.2030, 7211.29.2090, 
7211.29.4500, 7211.29.6030, 7211.29.6080, 7211.90.0000, 7212.40.1000, 
7212.40.5000, 7212.50.0000, 7225.19.0000, 7225.50.6000, 7225.50.7000, 
7225.50.8010, 7225.50.8085, 7225.99.0090, 7226.19.1000, 7226.19.9000, 
7226.92.5000, 7226.92.7050, 7226.92.8050, and 7226.99.0000.
    Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and 
U.S. Customs Service (``U.S. Customs'') purposes, the written 
description of the merchandise under investigation is dispositive.

Facts Available

    Section 776(a)(2) of the Act provides that if an interested party 
or any other person (A) withholds information that has been requested 
by the administering authority; (B) fails to provide such information 
by the deadlines for the submission of the information or in the form 
and manner requested, subject to subsections (c)(1) and (e) of section 
782; (C) significantly impedes a proceeding under this title; or (D) 
provides such information but the information cannot be verified as 
provided in section 782(i), the administering authority shall, subject 
to section 782(d), use the facts otherwise available in reaching the 
applicable determination under this title. In accordance with sections 
776(a)(2)(A) and (C), because Iscor failed to respond to our 
questionnaire and significantly impeded the investigation, and because 
the relevant subsections of section 782 of the Act therefore do not 
apply, we must use facts otherwise available to determine the dumping 
margin for Iscor.
    Section 776(b) of the Act provides that, in selecting from among 
the facts available, the Department may employ adverse inferences when 
an interested party has failed to cooperate by not acting to the best 
of its ability to comply with requests for information. See also 
``Statement of Administrative Action'' accompanying the URAA, H.R. Rep. 
No.

[[Page 61275]]

103-316, 870 (1994) (``SAA''). Based on Iscor's failure to respond to 
the Department's antidumping questionnaire, we have determined that 
Iscor has not acted to the best of its ability to comply with the 
Department's information requests. Therefore, pursuant to 776(b) of the 
Act, we used an adverse inference in selecting a margin from the facts 
available. As facts available, the Department has applied a margin of 
16.65 percent, the only alleged margin in the petition.
    Section 776(c) of the Act provides that, when the Department relies 
on secondary information, such as the petition, as facts available, it 
must, to the extent practicable, corroborate that information from 
independent sources that are reasonably at its disposal. The SAA 
clarifies that ``corroborate'' means that the Department will satisfy 
itself that the secondary information to be used has probative value 
(see SAA at 870). The SAA also states that independent sources used to 
corroborate may include, for example, published price lists, official 
import statistics and customs data, and information obtained from 
interested parties during the particular investigation (see Id.).
    We reviewed the adequacy and accuracy of the information in the 
petition during our pre-initiation analysis of the petition, to the 
extent appropriate information was available for this purpose (e.g., 
import statistics, foreign market research reports, and data from U.S. 
producers). See Initiation Checklist: Cold-Rolled Flat-Rolled Carbon-
Quality Steel Products from Argentina, Brazil, the People's Republic of 
China (``China''), Indonesia, Japan, the Russian Federation 
(``Russia''), Slovakia, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, and 
Venezuela (June 21, 1999), which is on file in the Central Records Unit 
(``CRU'') of the Main Commerce Department Building. In order to 
determine the probative value of the petition margin for use as adverse 
facts available in this preliminary determination, we have re-examined 
evidence supporting the petition calculation. In accordance with 
section 776(c) of the Act, to the extent practicable, we examined the 
key elements of the U.S. price and normal value calculations on which 
the petition margin was based and found that the information has 
probative value (see the October 19, 1999 memorandum to the file 
regarding Facts Available Corroboration, which is on file in the CRU of 
the Main Commerce Department building).

The All-Others Rate

    All foreign manufacturers/exporters in this investigation are being 
assigned dumping margins on the basis of facts otherwise available. 
Section 735(c)(5)(B) of the Act provides that, where the dumping 
margins established for all exporters and producers individually 
investigated are determined entirely under section 776 of the Act, the 
Department may use any reasonable method to establish the estimated 
all-others rate for exporters and producers not individually 
investigated, including weight-averaging the facts available margins. 
In this case, the margin assigned to the only company investigated is 
based on adverse facts available. Therefore, consistent with the 
statute and the SAA at 873, we are using an alternative method. As our 
alternative, we are basing the all-others rate on the margin alleged in 
the petition. As a result, the all-others rate is 16.65 percent.

Suspension of Liquidation

    In accordance with section 733(d) of the Act, we are directing the 
U.S. Customs Service to suspend liquidation of all imports of subject 
merchandise that are entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for 
consumption on or after the date of publication of this notice in the 
Federal Register. We will instruct the U.S. Customs Service to require 
a cash deposit or the posting of a bond equal to the weighted-average 
amount by which the normal value exceeds the export price, as indicated 
below. These suspension-of-liquidation instructions will remain in 
effect until further notice. The weighted-average dumping margins are 
as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                              Weighted-
                                                               average
                   Exporter/manufacturer                        margin
                                                              percentage
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Iscor......................................................        16.65
All Others.................................................        16.65
------------------------------------------------------------------------

ITC Notification

    In accordance with section 733(f) of the Act, we have notified the 
ITC of our preliminary determination. If our final determination is 
affirmative, the ITC will determine before the later of 120 days after 
the date of this preliminary determination or 45 days after our final 
determination whether imports of the subject merchandise are materially 
injuring, or threaten material injury to, the U.S. industry.

Public Comment

    Case briefs or other written comments may be submitted to the 
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration no later than fifty days 
after the date of publication of this notice, and rebuttal briefs, 
limited to issues raised in case briefs, no later than fifty-five days 
after the date of publication of this preliminary determination. A list 
of authorities used and an executive summary of issues should accompany 
any briefs submitted to the Department. This summary should be limited 
to five pages total, including footnotes. In accordance with section 
774 of the Act, we will hold a public hearing, if requested, to afford 
interested parties an opportunity to comment on arguments raised in 
case or rebuttal briefs. Tentatively, any hearing will be held fifty-
seven days after publication of this notice at the U.S. Department of 
Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 
20230, at a time and location to be determined. Parties should confirm 
by telephone the date, time, and location of the hearing 48 hours 
before the scheduled time.
    Interested parties who wish to request a hearing, or to participate 
if one is requested, must submit a written request to the Assistant 
Secretary for Import Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, Room 
1870, within 30 days of the date of publication of this notice. 
Requests should contain: (1) The party's name, address, and telephone 
number; (2) the number of participants; and (3) a list of the issues to 
be discussed. At the hearing, each party may make an affirmative 
presentation only on issues raised in that party's case brief, and may 
make rebuttal presentations only on arguments included in that party's 
rebuttal brief. See 19 CFR 351.310(c). If this investigation proceeds 
normally, we will make our final determination within 75 days after the 
date of this preliminary determination.
    This determination is issued and published in accordance with 
sections 733(d) and 777(i)(1) of the Act.

    Dated: November 1, 1999.
Robert S. LaRussa,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 99-29459 Filed 11-9-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P