[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 233 (Monday, December 4, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 75670-75671]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-30804]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-583-830]


Preliminary Rescission of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review: 
Stainless Steel Plate in Coils From Taiwan

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

ACTION: Notice of preliminary rescission in the antidumping duty 
administrative review of stainless steel plate in coils from Taiwan.

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SUMMARY: On July 7, 2000, the Department of Commerce (``Department'') 
published a notice of initiation of an antidumping duty administrative 
review on stainless steel plate in coils from Taiwan. This review 
covers two manufacturers/exporters of the subject merchandise. The 
period of review (``POR'') is November 4, 1998 through April 30, 2000. 
The Department is now preliminarily rescinding this review based on 
record evidence indicating that there were no entries into the United 
States of subject merchandise during the POR.

EFFECTIVE DATE: December 4, 2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Juanita H. Chen or Rick Johnson, 
Enforcement Group III, Office 9, Import Administration, International 
Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution 
Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20230, telephone 202-482-0409 (Chen) or 
202-482-3818 (Johnson), fax 202-482-1388.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Applicable Statute

    Unless otherwise indicated, all citations to the Tariff Act of 1930 
(``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 at 19 CFR part 351 (2000).

Background

    On May 21, 1999, the Department published the antidumping duty 
order on stainless steel plate in coils from Taiwan. See Antidumping 
Duty Orders; Certain Stainless Steel Plate in Coils From Belgium, 
Canada, Italy, the Republic of Korea, South Africa, and Taiwan, 64 FR 
27756 (May 21, 1999). On May 16, 2000, the Department published a 
notice of opportunity to request an administrative review of this order 
for the period November 4, 1998 through April 30, 2000. See Antidumping 
or Countervailing Duty Order, Finding, or Suspended Investigation; 
Opportunity to Request Administrative Review, 65 FR 31141 (May 16, 
2000). Petitioners Allegheny Ludlum, AK Steel Corporation, Butler Armco 
Independent Union, J&L Specialty Steel, Inc., North American Stainless, 
United Steelworkers of America, AFL-CIO/CLC, and Zanesville Armco 
Independent Organization (collectively ``petitioners'') timely 
requested that the Department conduct an administrative review of sales 
by Yieh United Steel Corporation (``YUSCO''), a Taiwan producer and 
exporter of subject merchandise, and Ta Chen Stainless Pipe Co., Ltd. 
(``Ta Chen''), a Taiwan exporter of subject merchandise. YUSCO also 
timely requested that the Department conduct an administrative review 
of YUSCO's sales. YUSCO withdrew its request for review on July 19, 
2000. On July 7, 2000, in accordance with section 751(a) of the Act, 
the Department published in the Federal Register a notice of initiation 
of this antidumping duty administrative review of sales by YUSCO and Ta 
Chen for the period November 4, 1998 through April 30, 2000. See 
Initiation of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Administrative 
Reviews and Requests for Revocations in Part, 65 FR 41942 (July 7, 
2000).
    On July 10, 2000, the Department issued its antidumping duty 
questionnaire to YUSCO and Ta Chen. On July 19, 2000, along with 
withdrawing its request for an administrative review, YUSCO requested 
that the Department rescind this review, claiming it made no entries of 
subject merchandise into the United States during the POR. On July 27, 
2000, the Department solicited comments on YUSCO's request for 
rescission. See Memo to the File from Juanita H. Chen (July 27, 2000). 
On August 8, 2000, YUSCO submitted its Section A response to the 
Department's questionnaire. YUSCO reiterated its request for rescission 
on August 16, 2000. Also on that date, petitioners filed comments 
opposing YUSCO's request for rescission, which included references to 
the original investigation indicating that Ta Chen's U.S. affiliate, Ta 
Chen International (CA) Corp. (``TCI'') made sales of YUSCO's 
merchandise during the POR and had additional inventory not yet sold.
    On July 31, 2000, Ta Chen stated that it did not have any U.S. 
sales, shipments or entries of subject merchandise during the POR, and 
requested that it not be required to answer the Department's 
questionnaire. On August 1, 2000, the Department asked Ta Chen a 
supplemental question regarding shipments in the POR falling under a 
certain Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (``HTS'') 
number, and gave Ta Chen an extension of time in which to respond to 
the antidumping duty questionnaire. On August 9, 2000, Ta Chen repeated 
its statement that it did not have any U.S. sales, shipments or entries 
during the POR, stated that imports under the HTS number were cut-to-
length stainless steel plate and not subject merchandise, and repeated 
its request not to have to answer the Department's questionnaire. On 
August 24, 2000, the Department denied Ta Chen's request that it not be 
required to answer the questionnaire, and issued supplemental questions 
to Ta Chen. On August 31 and September 5, 2000, Ta Chen responded to 
the Department's supplemental questions, stating that of TCI's sales of 
YUSCO's merchandise from TCI's U.S. warehouse inventory during the POR, 
all merchandise entered before the POR. Ta Chen also stated that while 
there was a sale of subject merchandise from YUSCO to TCI during the 
POR, such subject merchandise entered the United States and was resold 
after the POR. Ta Chen also stated that, for these reasons, it did not 
intend on answering the Department's questionnaire. On September 12, 
2000, petitioners submitted comments on Ta Chen's response to the 
Department's supplemental questions, arguing that the Department should 
review TCI's resales of YUSCO's merchandise as constructed export price 
(``CEP'') sales, citing to Silicon Metal from Brazil; Final Results of 
Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, 59 FR 42806 (August 19, 1994). 
Petitioners emphasized that they requested the review not only to 
liquidate entries during the review period but also to set a new cash 
deposit rate on future entries. On September 26, 2000, the Department 
informed Ta Chen of its intention to conduct a review of TCI's sales, 
and asked that Ta Chen submit its response no later than October 10, 
2000. Ta Chen failed to submit a response.
    On September 19, 2000, the Department conducted an inspection of 
Customs documentation at the U.S. Customs Service (``Customs'') in Long 
Beach, California. A review of a random sampling of entries during the 
POR revealed that none of the entries were of subject merchandise. See 
Memo to the

[[Page 75671]]

File from Carrie Blozy and Juanita H. Chen (October 19, 2000). On 
October 24, 2000, the Department informed petitioners that as a result 
of this inspection, as well as a separate Customs inquiry, the 
Department is re-visiting the issue of whether it is appropriate to 
continue this administrative review. See Memo to the File from Juanita 
H. Chen through Edward Yang (October 25, 2000).

Scope of the Review

    For purposes of this review, the product covered is certain 
stainless steel plate in coils. Stainless steel is an alloy steel 
containing, by weight, 1.2 percent or less of carbon and 10.5 percent 
or more of chromium, with or without other elements. The subject plate 
products are flat-rolled products, 254 mm or over in width and 4.75 mm 
or more in thickness, in coils, and annealed or otherwise heat treated 
and pickled or otherwise descaled. The subject plate may also be 
further processed (e.g., cold-rolled, polished, etc.) provided that it 
maintains the specified dimensions of plate following such processing. 
Excluded from the scope of this review are the following: (1) Plate not 
in coils, (2) plate that is not annealed or otherwise heat treated and 
pickled or otherwise descaled, (3) sheet and strip, and (4) flat bars. 
In addition, certain cold-rolled stainless steel plate in coils is also 
excluded from the scope of these orders. The excluded cold-rolled 
stainless steel plate in coils is defined as that merchandise which 
meets the physical characteristics described above that has undergone a 
cold-reduction process that reduced the thickness of the steel by 25 
percent or more, and has been annealed and pickled after this cold 
reduction process. The merchandise subject to this review is currently 
classifiable in the HTS at subheadings: 7219.11.00.30, 7219.11.00.60, 
7219.12.00.05, 7219.12.00.20, 7219.12.00.25, 7219.12.00.50, 
7219.12.00.55, 7219.12.00.65, 7219.12.0070, 7219.12.00.80, 
7219.31.00.10, 7219.90.00.10, 7219.90.00.20, 7219.90.00.25, 
7219.90.00.60, 7219.90.00.80, 7220.11.00.00, 7220.20.10.10, 
7220.20.10.15, 7220.20.10.60, 7220.20.10.80, 7220.20.60.05, 
7220.20.60.10, 7220.20.60.15, 7220.20.60.60, 7220.20.60.80, 
7220.90.00.10, 7220.90.00.15, 7220.90.00.60, and 7220.90.00.80. 
Although the HTS subheadings are provided for convenience and Customs 
purposes, the written description of the merchandise under 
investigation is dispositive.

Period of Review

    The POR is November 4, 1998 through April 30, 2000.

Preliminary Rescission of Review

    The Department has previously determined that ``{s}ales of 
merchandise that can be demonstrably linked with entries prior to the 
suspension of liquidation are not subject merchandise and therefore are 
not subject to review by the Department.'' See Certain Stainless Wire 
Rods From France: Final Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative 
Review, 61 FR 47874, 47875 (September 11, 1996); see also Antidumping 
Duties; Countervailing Duties; Final rule, 62 FR 27295, 27314 (May 19, 
1997).
    Ta Chen has certified that of TCI's resales of YUSCO's merchandise 
from its U.S. warehouse inventory during the POR, all merchandise 
entered before the POR. Therefore, such merchandise entered prior to 
the suspension of liquidation. The only merchandise TCI purchased from 
YUSCO during the POR entered the United States and was resold after the 
POR. While petitioners reference evidence from the original 
investigation that TCI sold subject merchandise out of inventory on 
December 18, 1998, the Department's Customs inquiry indicates that such 
merchandise did not enter the United States after the suspension of 
liquidation. Accordingly, in this review, it has not been established 
that there were any sales of subject merchandise which entered during 
the POR.
    Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.213(d)(3), the Department may rescind an 
administrative review, in whole or with respect to a particular 
exporter or producer, if the Secretary concludes that, during the 
period covered by the review, there were no entries, exports, or sales 
of the subject merchandise. Since the evidence shows that there were no 
entries of certain stainless steel plate in coils made by either YUSCO 
or Ta Chen from Taiwan during the POR, the Department is preliminarily 
rescinding this review in accordance with 19 CFR 351.213(d)(3). The 
cash deposit rate for YUSCO will remain at 8.02 percent, for YUSCO/Ta 
Chen will remain at 10.20 percent, and for ``all other'' producers/
exporters of the subject merchandise will remain at 7.39 percent, the 
rates established in the most recent segment of this proceeding. See 
Notice of Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value: 
Stainless Steel Plate in Coils from Taiwan, 64 FR 15493 (March 31, 
1999).
    Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309, interested parties may submit written 
comments in response to this preliminary rescission. Case briefs must 
be submitted within 14 days after the date of publication of this 
notice and rebuttal briefs, limited to arguments raised in the case 
briefs, must be submitted no later than 7 days after the time limit for 
filing case briefs. Case and rebuttal briefs must be served on 
interested parties in accordance with 19 CFR 351.303(f).
    This notice is published in accordance with 19 CFR 351.213(d)(4).

    Dated: November 21, 2000.
Troy H. Cribb,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 00-30804 Filed 12-1-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P