[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 220 (Wednesday, November 14, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57035-57036]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-28533]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-580-841]


Structural Steel Beams From the Republic of Korea: Notice of 
Preliminary Results of Changed Circumstances Antidumping Duty 
Administrative Review

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

ACTION: Notice of preliminary results of changed circumstances 
antidumping duty administrative review.

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SUMMARY: On October 1, 2001, the Department of Commerce 
(``Department'') published a notice of initiation in the above-named 
case. As a result of this review, the Department preliminarily finds 
for the purposes of this proceeding that INI Steel Company is the 
successor-in-interest to Inchon Iron and Steel Co., Ltd.

EFFECTIVE DATE: November 14, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cheryl Werner or Laurel LaCivita, 
Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20230; telephone (202) 482-2667 and (202) 482-4243, 
respectively.

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's regulations are to the 
regulations at 19 CFR part 351 (2001).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    In an August 6, 2001, letter to the Department, INI Steel Company 
(``INI''), formerly Inchon Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. (``Inchon''), 
notified the Department that as of August 1, 2001, Inchon's corporate 
name had changed to INI Steel Company. INI requested that the 
Department conduct an expedited changed circumstances review to confirm 
that INI is the successor-in-interest to Inchon. Since the Department 
had insufficient information on the record concerning this corporate 
name change, the Department concluded that it would be inappropriate to 
conduct an expedited changed circumstances review and issue a 
preliminary results concurrent with the initiation of a changed 
circumstance review. Thus the Department published only a notice of 
initiation. (See Notice of Initiation of Changed Circumstances 
Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, 66 FR 49929 (October 1, 2001) 
(``Notice of Initiation''). On October 17, 2001, the Department sent a 
questionnaire to INI requesting more information. On October 24, 2001, 
the Department received INI's response to the questionnaire. INI 
provided documentation on the name change requested by the Department 
consisting of: the minutes of Inchon's July 27, 2001 shareholders' 
meeting where the name change was approved; the Inchon District Court's 
official certification of the name change registered on July 31, 2001; 
INI's Business Registration Certificate issued on August 1, 2001 by the 
Inchon Tax Office; organization charts before and after the corporate 
name change; a list of the Board of Directors before and after the 
corporate name change; a chart of suppliers before and after the 
corporate name change; and a customer list before and after the name 
change.

Scope of the Review

    The products covered by this review include structural steel beams 
that are doubly-symmetric shapes, whether hot-or cold-rolled, drawn, 
extruded, formed or finished, having at least one dimension of at least 
80 mm (3.2 inches or more), whether of carbon or alloy (other than 
stainless) steel, and whether or not drilled, punched, notched, 
painted, coated or clad. These products include, but are not limited 
to, wide-flange beams (``W'' shapes), bearing piles (``HP'' shapes), 
standard beams (``S'' or ``I'' shapes), and M-shapes.
    All products that meet the physical and metallurgical descriptions 
provided above are within the scope of this investigation unless 
otherwise excluded. The following products are

[[Page 57036]]

outside and/or specifically excluded from the scope of this 
investigation: structural steel beams greater than 400 pounds per 
linear foot or with a web or section height (also known as depth) over 
40 inches.
    The merchandise subject to this investigation is classified in the 
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (``HTSUS'') at 
subheadings: 7216.32.0000, 7216.33.0030, 7216.33.0060, 7216.33.0090, 
7216.50.0000, 7216.61.0000, 7216.69.0000, 7216.91.0000, 7216.99.0000, 
7228.70.3040, 7228.70.6000. Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided 
for convenience and Customs purposes, the written description of the 
merchandise under investigation is dispositive.

Preliminary Results

    In making successor-in-interest determinations, the Department 
examines several factors including, but not limited to, changes in: (1) 
Management; (2) production facilities; (3) supplier relationships; and 
(4) customer base. See e.g., Brass Sheet and Strip from Canada; Final 
Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, 57 FR 20460, 20461 
(May 13, 1992). While no single factor, or combination of factors, will 
necessarily be dispositive, the Department will generally consider the 
new company to be the successor to its predecessor company if the 
resulting operations are essentially the same as the predecessor 
company. E.g, id. and Industrial Phosphoric Acid from Israel; Final 
Results of Changed Circumstances Review, 59 FR 6944, 6945 (February 14, 
1994). Thus, if the evidence demonstrates that, with respect to the 
production and sale of the subject merchandise, the new company 
operates as the same business entity as its predecessor, the Department 
will treat the new company as the successor-in-interest to the 
predecessor.
    Based on the information submitted by INI during the course of this 
changed circumstances review, we preliminarily find that INI is the 
successor-in-interest to Inchon because we preliminarily find that the 
company's organizational structure, senior management, production 
facilities, supplier relationships, and customers have remained 
essentially unchanged after the name change with respect to the subject 
merchandise. Furthermore, INI has provided sufficient internal and 
public documentation of the name change. If there are no changes in the 
final results of the changed circumstances review, INI shall retain the 
antidumping duty deposit rate assigned to Inchon by the Department in 
the most recent administrative review of the subject merchandise.
    We are issuing and publishing this finding and notice in accordance 
with sections 751(b) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.221(c)(3) 
and 19 CFR 351.216.

Public Comment

    Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310, any interested party may request a 
hearing within 10 days of publication of this notice. Case briefs and/
or written comments from interested parties may be submitted no later 
than 21 days after the date of publication of this notice. Rebuttal 
briefs and rebuttals comments, limited to the issues raised in those 
case briefs or comments, may be filed no later than 28 days after the 
publication of this notice. All written comments must be submitted and 
served on all interested parties on the Department's service list in 
accordance with 19 CFR 351.303. Any hearing, if requested, will be held 
no later than 30 days after the date of publication of this notice, or 
the first working day thereafter. Persons interested in attending the 
hearing should contact the Department for the date and time of the 
hearing. The Department will publish in the Federal Register a notice 
of final results of this changed circumstances antidumping duty 
administrative review, including the results of its analysis of any 
issues raised in any written comments.
    During the course of this changed circumstances review, we will not 
change any cash deposit instructions on the merchandise subject to this 
changed circumstances review, unless a change is determined to be 
warranted pursuant to the final results of this review.
    This notice is in accordance with section 751(b)(1) of the Act and 
19 CFR 351.216 and 351.221(c)(3).

    Dated: November 7, 2001.
Faryar Shirzad,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 01-28533 Filed 11-13-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P