[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 118 (Wednesday, June 19, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41693-41694]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-15479]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-357-816]


Notice of Amended Preliminary Determination of Sales at Less Than 
Fair Value: Cold-Rolled Carbon Steel Flat Products from Argentina

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

ACTION: Notice of amended preliminary antidumping duty determination of 
sales at less than fair value: cold-rolled carbon steel flat products 
from Argentina

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EFFECTIVE DATE: June 19, 2002.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: J. David Dirstine, Import 
Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of 
Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 
20230; telephone: (202) 482-4033.

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 (URAA). In addition, unless otherwise 
indicated, all citations to the Department of Commerce's (the 
Department's) regulations are to the provisions codified at 19 CFR Part 
351 (2001).

Significant Ministerial Error

    The Department of Commerce (the Department) is amending the 
preliminary determination of sales at less than fair value in the 
antidumping duty investigation of cold-rolled carbon steel flat 
products from Argentina to reflect the correction of two ministerial 
errors made in the margin calculations regarding Siderar S.A.I.C. 
(Siderar) in that determination, pursuant to 19 CFR 341.224(g)(1) and 
(g)(2). A ministerial error is defined as an error in addition, 
subtraction, or other arithmetic function, clerical error resulting 
from inaccurate copying, duplication, or the like, and any other 
similar type of unintentional error which the Secretary considers 
ministerial. See 19 CFR 351.224(f). 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). In this case, correction of the ministerial errors results 
in a reduction in the margin considered significant within the meaning 
of 19 CFR 351.224(g)(1). We are publishing this amendment to the 
preliminary determination pursuant to 19 CFR 351.224(e). As a result of 
this amended preliminary determination, we have revised the antidumping 
rates for the respondent, Siderar, and the all-others rate.

Scope of Investigation

    For purposes of this investigation, the products covered are 
certain cold-rolled (cold-reduced) flat-rolled carbon-quality steel 
products. For a full description of the scope of this investigation, 
please see the Scope Appendix attached to the affirmative preliminary 
determination in this proceeding. See Notice of Preliminary 
Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, Postponement of Final 
Determination, and Preliminary Negative Determination of Critical 
Circumstances: Certain Cold-Rolled

[[Page 41694]]

Carbon Steel Flat Products from Argentina, 67 FR 31181 (May 9, 2002) 
(Preliminary Determination).

Ministerial-Errors Allegation

    On May 9, 2002, the Department issued its affirmative preliminary 
determination in this proceeding. See Preliminary Determination. There 
is one respondent manufacturer/exporter, Siderar, in this 
investigation.
    On May 3, 2002, the Department received timely allegations of 
ministerial errors (in accordance with section 351.224(c)(2) of the 
Department's regulations) in the Preliminary Determination from 
Siderar. Siderar alleged that the Department made an inadvertent 
programming error in calculating Siderar's interest expense by 
misplacing a decimal point in the calculations. Siderar also alleged 
that, although intended by the Department, non-prime home-market sales 
were inadvertently not excluded from the margin calculation.
    The Department has reviewed its preliminary calculations and agrees 
that the errors which Siderar alleged do constitute ministerial errors 
within the meaning of 19 CFR 351.224(f). Furthermore, we determine that 
the change in the margin resulting from correcting these errors is 
significant pursuant to 19 CFR 351.224(g)(1). We are amending the 
Preliminary Determination to reflect the correction of these 
ministerial errors pursuant to 19 CFR 351.224(e). See the Siderar 
Amended Preliminary Calculation Memorandum from J. David Dirstine to 
the File, dated May 30, 2002.
    The collection of bonds or cash deposits and suspension of 
liquidation will be revised accordingly.

Amended Preliminary Determination

    As a result of our correction of the ministerial errors, we have 
determined that the following dumping margins apply. In accordance with 
section 733(d)(2) of the Act, we are directing the Customs Service to 
continue to suspend liquidation of all imports of subject merchandise. 
We will instruct the Customs Service to require a cash deposit or the 
posting of a bond equal to the weighted-average amounts as indicated in 
the chart below for subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from 
warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of this 
notice in the Federal Register. These suspension-of-liquidation 
instructions will remain in effect until further notice. The weighted-
average dumping margins are as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                        Weighted-average
                Exporter/manufacturer                  percentage margin
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Siderar..............................................              43.46
                                                       .................
All Others...........................................              43.46
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    ** As Siderar was the only respondent that we investigated, we used 
Siderar's margin as the all-others rate.

International Trade Commission Notification

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

Public Comment

    Case briefs for this investigation must be submitted to the 
Department no later than seven days after the date of the final 
verification report issued in this proceeding. Rebuttal briefs must be 
filed five days from the deadline date for case briefs. A list of 
authorities used, a table of contents, and an executive summary of 
issues should accompany any briefs submitted to the Department. 
Executive summaries should be limited to five pages total, including 
footnotes. Section 774 of the Act provides that the Department will 
hold a public hearing to afford interested parties an opportunity to 
comment on arguments raised in case or rebuttal briefs, provided that 
such a hearing is requested by an interested party. If a request for a 
hearing is made in this investigation, the hearing will tentatively be 
held two days after the rebuttal-brief deadline date at the U.S. 
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW, 
Washington, D.C. 20230.
    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 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. 
Oral presentations will be limited to issues raised in the briefs.
    We will make our final determination no later than September 23, 
2002.
    This determination is issued and published in accordance with 
sections 733(f) and 777(i)(1) of the Act.

    Dated: June 12, 2002
Richard W. Moreland,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 02-15479 Filed 6-18-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-S