[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 40 (Friday, February 28, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9635-9636]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-4793]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-852]


Creatine Monohydrate From the People's Republic of China; 
Initiation and Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Changed 
Circumstances Review

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

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

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SUMMARY: In response to a request from Suzhou Sanjian Fine Chemical 
Co., Ltd., the Department of Commerce is initiating a changed 
circumstances review of the antidumping duty order on creatine 
monohydrate from the People's Republic of China (``PRC'') (see Notice 
of Antidumping Duty Order: Creatine Monohydrate from the People's 
Republic of China, 65 FR 5583 (February 4, 2000)) and issuing this 
notice of preliminary results. Suzhou Sanjian Nutrient and Health 
Products Co., Ltd. has requested that the Department of Commerce review 
the company's name change and determine that Suzhou Sanjian Nutrient 
and Health Products Co., Ltd. is the successor-in-interest of Suzhou 
Sanjian Fine Chemical Co., Ltd.

EFFECTIVE DATE: February 28, 2003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Blanche Ziv or Julie Santoboni, Import 
Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of 
Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 
20230; telephone (202) 482-4207 or (202) 482-4194 respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On January 14, 2003, the Department received notification from 
Suzhou Sanjian Fine Chemical Co., Ltd. (``Suzhou Chemical'') that on 
September 15, 2000, its corporate name changed to Suzhou Sanjian 
Nutrient and Health Products Co., Ltd. (``Suzhou Health Products''). On 
January 23, 2003, we notified Suzhou Health Products that, in order to 
determine whether entries naming Suzhou Health Products as exporter 
should receive the cash deposit rate currently applied to Suzhou 
Chemical, it is necessary to conduct a changed circumstance review in 
accordance with section 751(b)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.216. At 
that time, we also requested certain additional information from Suzhou 
Health Products concerning the circumstances of the name change. On 
February 12, 2003, Suzhou Health Products responded to our request for 
information.

Scope of the Review

    Imports covered by this review are creatine monohydrate, which is 
commonly referred to as ``creatine.'' The chemical name for creatine 
monohydrate is N-(aminoiminomethyl)-N-methylgycine monohydrate. The 
Chemical Abstracts Service (``CAS'') registry number for this product 
is 6020-87-7. Creatine monohydrate in its pure form is a white, 
tasteless, odorless powder that is a naturally occurring metabolite 
found in muscle tissue. Creatine monohydrate is provided for in 
subheading 2925.20.90 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United 
States (``HTSUS''). Although the HTSUS subheading and the CAS registry 
number are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written 
description of the merchandise under review is dispositive.

Initiation and Preliminary Results of Changed Circumstances Review

    Pursuant to section 751(b)(1) of the Act, the Department will 
conduct a changed circumstances review upon receipt of information 
concerning, or a request from an interested party of, an antidumping 
duty order which shows changed circumstances sufficient to warrant a 
review of the order. Therefore, in accordance with section 751(b)(1) of 
the Act, we are initiating a changed circumstances review based upon 
the information contained in Suzhou Health Product's submissions.
    Section 351.221(c)(3)(ii) of the regulations permits the Department 
to combine the notice of initiation of a changed circumstances review 
and the notice of preliminary results in a single notice, if the 
Department concludes that expedited action is warranted. In this 
instance, because we have the information necessary to make a 
preliminary finding already on the record and no other interested party 
has commented on, or objected to, Suzhou Health Products' request for a 
changed circumstances review, we find that expedited action is 
warranted and have combined the notice of initiation and the notice of 
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., Notice of Final Results of Changed 
Circumstances Duty Administrative Review: Polychloroprene Rubber from 
Japan, 67 FR 58, 58-59 (January 2, 2002). While no single factor, or 
combination of factors, will necessarily prove 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. See 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 assign the new company 
the cash-deposit rate of its predecessor.
    In its February 12, 2003, submission Suzhou Health Products stated 
that the name change was effected solely for the purpose of clarifying 
the scope of the company's production to enhance its marketing efforts. 
Suzhou Health Products explained that it produces and sells creatine 
monohydrate and other health products, which are more accurately 
described as nutrient or health products, than as fine chemical 
products. Suzhou Health Products also stated that the name change was 
not due to a change in ownership, corporate strategy, management, 
corporate structure or customer base, all of which remain the same. 
Suzhou Health Products provided documentation in support of these 
claims including copies of the business licenses of the company

[[Page 9636]]

before and after the name change, the resolution of the Board of 
Directors authorizing the name change, the application for the name 
change filed with the Wuxian City Foreign Economic and Trade Commission 
and the Commission's approval of the application, and corporate 
organization charts before and after the name change. Suzhou Health 
Products also stated that since the name change, subject merchandise 
was produced at the same facilities that Suzhou Chemical used to 
produce subject merchandise during the original sales-at-less-than-
fair-value investigation (see Notice of Final Determination of Sales at 
Less Than Fair Value: Creatine Monohydrate from the People's Republic 
of China, 64 FR 71104 (December 20, 1999)).
    Suzhou Health Products, in its February 12, 2003, submission, has 
provided evidence there were no changes in the company's corporate 
structure and management as a result of, or contemporaneously with, the 
change of name. With respect to supplier relationships, Suzhou Health 
Products states that no suppliers have discontinued their relationship 
with the company since the name change and, while certain suppliers 
have been added, the addition of these new suppliers is merely a 
consequence of normal market conditions and the availability of supply. 
Finally, Suzhou Health Products asserts that there have been no changes 
in its customer relationships or customer base due to the name change, 
sales of Suzhou Health Products entirely replace the sales of Suzhou 
Chemical, and there have been no changes in product names or product 
brands.
    Based on the information submitted by Suzhou Health Products, we 
preliminarily find that Suzhou Health Products is the successor-in-
interest to Suzhou Chemical. We find that the company's organizational 
structure, senior management, production facilities, supplier 
relationships, and customers have remained essentially unchanged. 
Furthermore, Suzhou Health Products has provided sufficient 
documentation of its name change. Based on all the evidence reviewed, 
we find that Suzhou Health Products operates as the same business 
entity as Suzhou Chemical. Thus, we preliminarily find that Suzhou 
Health Products should receive the same antidumping duty cash-deposit 
rate (i.e., a 50.32 percent antidumping duty cash-deposit rate) with 
respect to the subject merchandise as Suzhou Chemical, its predecessor 
company.

Public Comment

    Any interested party may request a hearing within 30 days of 
publication of this notice. See 19 CFR 351.310(c). Any hearing, if 
requested, will be held 44 days after the date of publication of this 
notice, or the first working day thereafter. Interested parties may 
submit case briefs and/or written comments not later than 30 days after 
the date of publication of this notice. Rebuttal briefs and rebuttals 
to written comments, which must be limited to issues raised in such 
briefs or comments, may be filed not later than 37 days after the date 
of publication. Parties who submit arguments are requested to submit 
with the argument (1) a statement of the issue, (2) a brief summary of 
the argument, and (3) a table of authorities.
    Consistent with section 351.216(e) of the Department's regulations, 
we will issue the final results of this changed circumstances review no 
later than 270 days after the date on which this review was initiated, 
or within 45 days if all parties agree to our preliminary finding.
    We are issuing and publishing this finding and notice in accordance 
with sections 751(b)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and section 351.216 of 
the Department's regulations.

    Dated: February 24, 2003.
Susan Kuhbach,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 03-4793 Filed 2-27-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P