[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 149 (Thursday, August 2, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40191-40192]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-19348]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-863]


Notice of Amended Preliminary Antidumping Duty Determination of 
Sales at Less Than Fair Value: Honey From the People's Republic of 
China

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

ACTION: Notice of amended preliminary antidumping duty determination of 
sales at less than fair value: Honey from the People's Republic of 
China.

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EFFECTIVE DATE: August 2, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Angelica Mendoza (Inner Mongolia and 
Zhejiang) at (202) 482-3019, Fred Baker (Kunshan) at (202) 482-2924, 
Charles Rast at (202) 482-1324 or Donna Kinsella at (202) 482-0194; 
Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Enforcement Group III, Office 
Eight, Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW., 
Washington, DC 20230.

Amendment of Preliminary Determination

    The Department of Commerce (the Department) is amending the 
preliminary determination in the antidumping investigation of honey 
from the People's Republic of China (PRC). This amended preliminary 
determination results in a revised antidumping rate for one respondent.

Background

    On May 4, 2001, the Department issued its affirmative preliminary 
determination in this proceeding. See Notice of Preliminary 
Determination of Sales at Less than Fair Value: Honey from the People's 
Republic of China, 66 FR 24101 (May 11, 2001) (Preliminary 
Determination). That preliminary determination covered the following 
manufacturers/exporters: Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Native 
Produce and Animal By-Products Import and Export Corporation (Inner 
Mongolia), Kunshan Foreign Trading Company (Kunshan), Zhejiang Native 
Produce and Animal By-Products Import and Export Corporation 
(Zhejiang), High Hope International Group Jiangsu Foodstuffs Import and 
Export Corporation (High Hope), Shanghai Eswell Enterprise Company Ltd. 
(Shanghai Eswell), Anhui Native Produce Import and Export Corporation 
(Anhui), and Henan Native Produce Import and Export Corporation 
(Henan).
    On May 21, 2001, the Department received from the petitioners a 
timely allegation of ministerial errors in the preliminary 
determination. The petitioners alleged that the Department:
     Incorrectly calculated the value of iron drums for three 
respondents;
     Applied an incorrect inflation factor for two respondents;
     Used an incorrect byproduct production figure in 
calculating the volume of beeswax for one respondent;
     Failed to value water in its calculation of energy costs 
for one respondent.
    See letter from Collier Shannon Scott alleging ministerial errors 
in the preliminary determination (May 21, 2001).

Significant Ministerial Error

    A significant ministerial error is defined as an error, the 
correction of which, singly or in combination with other errors, would 
result in (1) a change of at least five absolute percentage points in, 
but not less than 25 percent of, the weighted-average dumping margin 
calculated in the original (erroneous) preliminary determination; or 
(2) a difference between a weighted-average dumping margin of zero or 
de minimis and a weighted-average dumping margin of greater than de 
minimis or vice versa. See 19 CFR 351.224(g).

Amended Determination

    The Department has reviewed its preliminary calculations and agrees 
that what the petitioners identified as ministerial errors do 
constitute ministerial errors within the meaning of 19 CFR 351.224(f). 
Moreover, from our review of the calculations we have determined that 
the Department also erred by:
     Using incorrect freight forwarding rates in valuing the 
freight charges for one respondent;
     Applying the by-product offset for of beeswax on a 
kilogram, rather than metric ton basis for one respondent;
     Failing to convert the value of beeswax into the correct 
currency for one respondent;
     Failing to calculate a single weighted-average normal 
value for one respondent who had two suppliers;
     Applying an inflator to labor rates taken from the 
Department's website.
    For a detailed analysis and the Department's determinations, see 
the July 25, 2001 Memorandum to Richard O. Weible from Angelica Mendoza 
regarding Ministerial Error Allegations on file in room B-099 of the 
main Commerce building. As a result of our analysis of petitioners' 
allegations and the other ministerial errors we have identified, we are 
amending our preliminary determination to revise the antidumping rates 
in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(e). However, we have determined that 
only for Zheijing were the ministerial errors significant within the 
meaning of 19 CFR 351.224(g). Therefore, this amended preliminary 
determination reflects a revised margin only for Zheijing. Suspension 
of liquidation will be revised accordingly and parties will be notified 
of this determination, in accordance with section 733(d) and (f) of the 
Tariff act of 1930, as amended (the Tariff Act).
    The following weighted-average dumping margins apply:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                Margin
                   Manufacturer/exporter                      (percent)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Inner Mongolia.............................................        44.00
Kunshan....................................................        37.51
Zhejiang...................................................        22.05
High Hope..................................................        39.76
Shanghai Eswell............................................        39.76
Anhui......................................................        39.76
Henan......................................................        39.76
PRC-wide Entity............................................       183.80
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[[Page 40192]]

The PRC-wide rate has not been amended, and applies to all entries of 
the subject merchandise except for entries from exporters/producers 
that are identified individually above.

Critical Circumstances

    In our preliminary determination we found critical circumstances 
with respect to Zhejiang. In order to find critical circumstances in 
situations in which there is no previous history of dumping of the 
product, the Department must find that there is a reasonable basis to 
believe or suspect that an importer knew or should have known that the 
exporter was selling the subject merchandise at less than fair value. 
See section 733(e)(1)(A) of the Tariff Act. In doing so, the Department 
normally considers margins of 25 percent or more for EP sales 
sufficient to impute such knowledge of dumping. See, e.g., Preliminary 
Determination, 66 FR at 24106. In this case we imputed to Zhejiang's 
importers knowledge that Zhejiang was selling honey to the United 
States at dumped prices based on the 38.96 percent margin originally 
calculated for Zhejiang. Id. Given that, as a result of this correction 
of ministerial errors, the margin for Zhejiang is now less than 25 
percent, we are no longer imputing knowledge of dumping with respect to 
imports from Zhejiang. Therefore, we now find that critical 
circumstances do not exist as to imports from Zhejiang. As a result, we 
will instruct the U.S. Customs Service to liquidate all entries of 
subject merchandise exported by Zhejiang that are entered, or withdrawn 
from warehouse, for consumption before May 11, 2001, which was the date 
of publication of the original preliminary determination in the Federal 
Register.
    This determination is issued and published pursuant to section 
733(f) and 777(i)(1) of the Tariff Act.

Faryar Shirzad,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 01-19348 Filed 8-1-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P