[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 188 (Thursday, September 27, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49349-49351]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-24231]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-508-809]


Notice of Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value: 
Pure Magnesium From Israel

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

SUMMARY: We determine that pure magnesium from Israel is being, or is 
likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value. On 
April 30, 2001, the Department of Commerce published its preliminary 
determination of sales at less than fair value of pure magnesium from 
Israel. Based on the results of verification and our analysis of the 
comments received, we have made changes in the margin calculations. 
Therefore, this final determination differs from the preliminary 
determination. The final weighted-average dumping margins are listed 
below in the section entitled ``Continuation of Suspension of 
Liquidation.''

EFFECTIVE DATE: September 27, 2001.

[[Page 49350]]


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Craig Matney or Andrew Covington, 
Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, Washington, D.C. 20230; telephone: (202) 482-
1778 or 482-3534, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Applicable Statute and Regulations

    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. In addition, unless otherwise 
indicated, all citations to the Department of Commerce's (``the 
Department's'') regulations refer to the regulations codified at 19 CFR 
part 351 (April 2000).

Case History

    Since the preliminary determination of this investigation (see 
Notice of Preliminary Determination of Sales at Less than Fair Value: 
Pure Magnesium from Israel, 66 FR 21325 (April 30, 2001) (``Preliminary 
Determination'')), the following events have occurred:
    On May 2, 2001, DSM submitted a supplemental questionnaire response 
regarding the appropriate date of sale and revised databases which 
include sales which were contracted during the POI but invoiced after 
the POI.
    On May 14, 2001, we postponed the final determination until no 
later than September 12, 2001, at the request of Dead Sea Magnesium, 
Ltd. (``DSM''), the sole respondent in this investigation (66 FR 24324, 
May 14, 2001).
    We verified DSM's questionnaire responses in May.
    The petitioners (Magnesium Corporation of America (``Magcorp''), 
the United Steelworkers of America, USWA Local 8319, and Concerned 
Employees of Northwest Alloys, Inc.), and DSM filed case briefs on July 
17 and 18, 2001, respectively. The petitioners and DSM filed rebuttal 
briefs on July 26 and 27, 2001, respectively. A brief was also filed by 
Rossborough Manufacturing Co. LP on July 26, 2001, regarding the scope 
of this and the companion antidumping investigations of pure magnesium 
from Russia and the People's Republic of China. Additonal comments on 
the scope of this investigation were submitted by the petitioners on 
August 9 and 27, 2001. No hearing was held because the parties withdrew 
their earlier requests for a hearing.
    Although the deadline for this determination was originally 
September 12, 2001, in light of the events of September 11, 2001, and 
the subsequent closure of the Federal Government for reasons of 
security, the timeframe for issuing this determination has been 
extended by two days.

Scope of Investigation

    The scope of this investigation includes imports of pure magnesium 
products, regardless of chemistry, form, or size, including, without 
limitation, ingots, raspings, granules, turnings, chips, powder, and 
briquettes.
    Pure magnesium includes: (1) Products that contain at least 99.95 
percent primary magnesium, by weight (generally referred to as ``ultra-
pure'' magnesium); (2) products that contain less than 99.95 percent 
but not less than 99.8 percent primary magnesium, by weight (generally 
referred to as ``pure'' magnesium); (3) chemical combinations of pure 
magnesium and other material(s) in which the pure magnesium content is 
50 percent or greater, but less than 99.8 percent, by weight, that do 
not conform to an ``ASTM Specification for Magnesium Alloy'' \1\ 
(generally referred to as ``off-specification pure'' magnesium); and 
(4) physical mixtures of pure magnesium and other material(s) in which 
the pure magnesium content is 50 percent or greater, but less than 99.8 
percent, by weight. Excluded from this order are mixtures containing 90 
percent or less pure magnesium by weight and one or more of certain 
non-magnesium granular materials to make magnesium-based reagent 
mixtures. The non-magnesium granular materials which the Department is 
aware are used to make such excluded reagents are: Lime, calcium metal, 
calcium silicon, calcium carbide, calcium carbonate, carbon, slag 
coagulants, fluorspar, nephaline syenite, feldspar, aluminum, alumina 
(Al2O3), calcium aluminate, soda ash, 
hydrocarbons, graphite, coke, silicon, rare earth metals/mischmetal, 
cryolite, silica/fly ash, magnesium oxide, periclase, ferroalloys, 
dolomitic lime, and colemanite. A party importing a magnesium-based 
reagent which includes one or more materials not on this list is 
required to seek a scope clarification from the Department before such 
a mixture may be imported free of antidumping duties.
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    \1\ The meaning of this term is the same as that used by the 
American Society for Testing and Materials in its Annual Book of 
ASTM Standards: Volume 01.02 Aluminum and Magnesium Alloys.
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    The merchandise subject to this investigation is classifiable under 
items 8104.11.00, 8104.19.00, and 8104.30.00 of the Harmonized Tariff 
Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Although the HTSUS subheadings 
are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written 
description of the merchandise under investigation is dispositive.
    For a full discussion of scope comments and determinations, see the 
accompanying September 14, 2001, Issue and Decision Memorandum from 
Richard W. Moreland, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import 
Administration, to Faryar Shirzad, Assistant Secretary for Import 
Administration (``Decision Memorandum''), comments 9 and 10, which is 
on file in the Central Records Unit of the main Department building 
(``B-099'') and on the Web at ia.ita.doc.gov/frn/.

Period of Investigation

    The period of investigation (``POI'') is October 1, 1999, through 
September 30, 2000. This period corresponds to the respondent's four 
most recently completed fiscal quarters prior to the filing of the 
petitions (see 19 CFR 351.204(b)).

Normal Value (``NV'')

    We used the same methodology as that described in the Preliminary 
Determination to determine the cost of production (``COP''), whether 
comparison market sales were at prices below the COP, and the NV, with 
the following exceptions:

a. Cost of Production Analysis

    We used the reported COP amounts to compute a weighted-average COP 
during the POI, except in the following instances in which the costs 
were not appropriately quantified or valued. Specifically, we restated 
the revenue received from sales of chlorine to DSM's affiliated party 
to reflect an arm's length price (see, Decision Memorandum, comment 6), 
adjusted the price paid by DSM to its affiliated electricity supplier 
to reflect a market price (see, Decision Memorandum, comment 7), 
adjusted DSM's reported cost of manufacturing (``COM'') by treating 
certain joint products as byproducts (rather than as coproducts) which 
required the reallocation of manufacturing costs (see, Decision 
Memorandum, comment 2), and recalculated DSM's reported interest and 
general and administrative (``G&A'') expenses based on this revised 
COM. For further information, see the September 12, 2001, Cost 
Calculation Memorandum.

b. Calculation of NV Based on Constructed Value

    We calculated the NV based on the methodology used in the 
Preliminary Determination, with the exception of the

[[Page 49351]]

changes described in the Cost of Production Analysis section, above.

Fair Value Comparisons

    To determine whether sales of pure magnesium from Israel to the 
United States were made at less than fair value, we compared the export 
price (``EP'') or constructed export price (``CEP'') to the NV.

Date of Sale

    At the Preliminary Determination, we used DSM's invoice date as the 
date of sale, and stated that we would examine this issue further for 
the final determination. Based on our review of DSM's May 2, 2001, 
submission and the information examined at verification, it is clear 
that the material terms of sale of DSM's various long-term agreements 
can, and frequently do, change prior to the date of invoice, but are 
fixed at the time of the invoice. See, e.g., public version of June 29, 
2001, ``Sales Verification Report'' at 5. Accordingly, we are 
continuing to use DSM's invoice date as the date of sale for the final 
determination.

Export Price and Constructed Export Price

    For certain sales to the United States, we used EP as defined in 
section 772(a) of the Act. For the remaining sales to the United 
States, we used CEP as defined in section 772(b) of the Act. We 
calculated EP and CEP based on the same methodologies described in the 
Preliminary Determination. At the commencement of verification DSM 
notified the Department that it had discovered a data sorting error 
which misclassified certain CEP sales as EP sales and vice versa. We 
have corrected this misclassification for the final determination. 
Additionally, based on our verification findings, we revised DSM's 
reported values for inventory carrying costs for all sales and, for 
selected sales, we revised DSM's reported values for its sale terms, 
contract dates, contract type, payment dates, imputed credit, U.S. 
warehousing, inland freight, and international freight. See June 26, 
2001, Verification Report and September 12, 2001, Calculation 
Memorandum.

Currency Conversions

    We made currency conversions in accordance with section 773A of the 
Act in the same manner as in the Preliminary Determination.

Verification

    As provided in section 782(i)(1) of the Act, we verified the 
information submitted by DSM for our final determination. We used 
standard verification procedures, including examination of relevant 
accounting and production records, as well as original source documents 
provided by the respondent.

Analysis of Comments Received

    All issues raised in the case and rebuttal briefs by parties to 
this investigation are addressed in the September 14, 2001, Issues and 
Decision Memorandum, which is hereby adopted and incorporated by 
reference into this notice. A list of the issues which parties have 
raised and to which we have responded, all of which are in the Issues 
and Decision Memorandum, is attached to this notice as an appendix. 
Parties can find a complete discussion of all issues raised in this 
investigation and the corresponding recommendations in this public 
memorandum which is on file in B-099. In addition, a complete version 
of the Issues and Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly on the 
Web at: 
http://ia.ita.doc.gov/frn/. The paper copy and electronic version of 
the Issues and Decision Memorandum are identical in content.

Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation

    In accordance with section 735(c)(1)(A) of the Act, we are 
directing the U.S. Customs Service (``Customs'') to continue to suspend 
liquidation of all imports of pure magnesium from Israel that are 
entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after April 
30, 2001, the date of publication of the Preliminary Determination in 
the Federal Register. Customs shall continue to require a cash deposit 
or the posting of a bond equal to the weighted-average amount by which 
the NV exceeds the EP or CEP as indicated in the chart below. These 
suspension of liquidation instructions will remain in effect until 
further notice.
    The weighted-average dumping margins are as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Weighted-
                  Exporter/manufacturer                   average margin
                                                            percentage
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dead Sea Magnesium......................................           28.14
All Others..............................................           28.14
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In accordance with section 735(c)(5)(A), we have based the ``all 
others'' rate on the dumping margin found for the sole producer/
exporter investigated in this proceeding, DSM.

ITC Notification

    In accordance with section 735(d) of the Act, we have notified the 
International Trade Commission (``ITC'') of our determination. As our 
final determination is affirmative, the ITC will, within 45 days, 
determine whether these imports are materially injuring, or threaten 
material injury to, the U.S. industry. If the ITC determines that 
material injury, or threat of material injury does not exist, the 
proceeding will be terminated and all securities posted will be 
refunded or canceled. If the ITC determines that such injury does 
exist, the Department will issue an antidumping duty order.
    This determination is issued and published in accordance with 
sections 735(d) and 777(i)(1) of the Act.

    Dated: September 14, 2001.
Faryar Shirzad,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.

Appendix

List of Comments and Issues in the Decision Memorandum

I. Issues Related to DSM's Sales
    Comment 1: Sales of ``Off Specification'' Magnesium
II. Issues Related to DSM's Cost of Production/Constructed Value
    Comment 2: Treatment of Chlorine and Sylvanite as Byproducts
    Comment 3: Identification of ``Split-off'' Point in the 
Production of Joint Products
    Comment 4: Cost Allocation Methodology
    Comment 5: Allocation of Production Costs to Pure and Alloy 
Magnesium
    Comment 6: Calculation of Byproduct Offset
    Comment 7: Adjustment of Electricity Costs for Affiliated Party 
Transactions
    Comment 8: Calculation of Profit for Constructed Value
III. Issues Related to Petitioners' Standing and Scope
    Comment 9: Reconsideration of Industry Standing
    Comment 10: Scope

[FR Doc. 01-24231 Filed 9-26-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P