[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 148 (Tuesday, August 3, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46510-46512]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-17561]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

(A-570-504)


Petroleum Wax Candles from the People's Republic of China: 
Rescission of Antidumping Duty New Shipper Review

AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: On September 30, 2003 the Department of Commerce (the 
Department) initiated three new shipper reviews of the antidumping duty 
order on petroleum wax candles from the People's Republic of China 
(PRC) covering the period August 1, 2002, through July 31, 2003. See 
Petroleum Wax Candles from the People's Republic of China: Initiation 
of Antidumping Duty New Shipper Reviews, 68 FR 57876 (October 7, 2003) 
(Initiation Notice). These new shipper reviews covered three exporters: 
Shanghai R&R Imp./Exp. Co., Ltd.; Changshan Import/Export Co., Ltd. 
(Changshan Ltd.); and Shangdong Huihe., Ltd. For the reasons discussed 
below, we are rescinding the new shipper review of Changshan Ltd.

EFFECTIVE DATE: August 3, 2004.

[[Page 46511]]


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dara Iserson or Thomas Gilgunn at 
(202) 482-4052 and (202) 482-4236, respectively; AD/CVD Enforcement, 
Office 7, Group III, Import Administration, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and 
Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20230.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On August 14, 2003, the Department received a timely request for a 
new shipper review of the antidumping duty order on petroleum wax 
candles from the PRC from Changshan Ltd., an exporter of subject 
merchandise to the United States. This request included a commercial 
invoice as documentation establishing the volume of Changshan Ltd.'s 
first shipment to the United States and the date of the first sale to 
an unaffiliated customer in the United States pursuant to section 
351.214(b)(2)(iv) of the Department's regulations. On September 30, 
2003, the Department initiated this new shipper review covering the 
period August 1, 2002, through July 31, 2003. See Initiation Notice.
    In its December 18, 2003, questionnaire response, Changshan Ltd. 
provided another version of its commercial invoice which had a 
different merchandise description and a different date of sale. We also 
obtained entry documentation from U.S. Customs & Border Protection 
(CBP) which was placed on the record. After examining all of these 
documents, the Department sent a letter to Changshan Ltd. on March 18, 
2004, requesting that it explain why the copy of the commercial invoice 
which documented its single new shipper sale in Exhibit 9 of its 
December 18, 2003, response contained material differences when 
compared to the commercial invoice Changshan Ltd. included in its 
August 14, 2003, new shipper review request. (See our letter dated 
March 18, 2004, for a complete discussion of those differences.) 
Changshan Ltd. submitted its response on April 15, 2004. On May 10, 
2004, we asked Changshan Ltd. to explain and provide supporting 
documentation as to why it submitted documents with the same invoice 
number, but different dates and different merchandise descriptions. In 
its May 17, 2004, response, Changshan Ltd. stated that the fact that it 
had prepared multiple versions of the same commercial invoice for its 
single new shipper sale was the result of clerical errors and a general 
lack of experience in preparing commercial documents.
    After analyzing these responses and all of the information on the 
record, the Department issued a memorandum informing the parties that 
it intended to rescind this new shipper review. (See Petroleum Wax 
Candles from the People's Republic of China (PRC); Intent to Rescind 
the New Shipper Review for Changshan Import/Export Co., Ltd. (8/1/02 - 
7/31/03), dated June 7, 2004 (Intent to Rescind Memo.) In our Intent to 
Rescind Memo, the Department informed the interested parties that we 
intended to rescind this new shipper review because the initiation of 
this review was based on documents which failed to establish: 1) the 
date on which the subject merchandise was first entered, or withdrawn 
from warehouse, for consumption, or the date on which Changshan Ltd. 
first shipped the subject merchandise for export to the United States; 
and 2) the date of the first sale to an unaffiliated customer in the 
United States. (See sections 351.214(b)(2)(iv)(A) and (C) of the 
Department's regulations.) We provided interested parties an 
opportunity to comment on the Intent to Rescind Memo.
    In its June 14, 2004, comments on our Intent to Rescind Memo, 
Changshan Ltd. disagreed with the Department's analysis of its sales 
documents. Changshan Ltd. made two arguments with respect to the 
Department's intent to rescind its new shipper review. First, Changshan 
Ltd. argued that it issued only one invoice for the sale at issue and 
that any subsequent ``revisions'' made to that invoice were immaterial. 
Second, Changshan Ltd. argued that, pursuant to section 351.214(f) of 
its regulations, the Department can only rescind a new shipper review 
where the respondent withdraws its request for review where there was 
no entry or sale within the period of review (POR) and the expansion of 
the POR would prevent the timely completion of the review. In its June 
14, 2004, comments on our Intent to Rescind Memo, the National Candles 
Association, petitioners, provided a statement in support of the 
Department's decision to rescind this new shipper review. On June 15, 
2004, Changshan Ltd. withdrew its request for a new shipper review.

Scope of the Order

    The products covered by this order are certain scented or unscented 
petroleum wax candles made from petroleum wax and having fiber or 
paper-cored wicks. They are sold in the following shapes: tapers, 
spirals, and straight-sided dinner candles; rounds, columns, pillars, 
votives; and various wax-filled containers. The products were 
classified under the Tariff Schedules of the United States (TSUS) item 
755.25, Candles and Tapers. The products are currently classifiable 
under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) item 
3406.00.00. Although the HTSUS subheading is provided for convenience 
and customs purposes, our written description of the scope of this 
proceeding remains dispositive.

Rescission of Review

    With every new shipper review request, the Department has an 
obligation to analyze the documentation and certifications to establish 
that they meet the conditions of section 351.214(b)(2)(iv) of the 
Department's regulations. At the time Changshan Ltd. requested this new 
shipper review, we determined that the regulatory requirements were met 
and we initiated the new shipper review. See Initiation Notice. Since 
the initiation, in response to our questions regarding the sale at 
issue, Changshan Ltd. has submitted documentation which demonstrates 
that the invoice provided with the request for this new shipper review 
was neither correct nor accurate. Furthermore, three other versions of 
this invoice are now on the record of this review. We are not persuaded 
by Changshan Ltd.'s arguments that only one invoice was issued and the 
subsequent revisions to this invoice were immaterial. In fact, the 
discrepancies in the dates on the various versions of the invoice are 
material to the Department's analysis of whether Changshan Ltd.'s 
request for a new shipper review fulfills the regulatory requirements 
necessary for the Department to initiate a new shipper review. See 
sections 351.214(b)(2)(iv)(A) and (C). Changshan Ltd.'s explanations of 
why the invoices differ and how errors were made do not demonstrate 
that the invoice which they describe as the ``one'' invoice is indeed 
the correct invoice. Moreover, even assuming we found its explanations 
reasonable, Changshan Ltd. has stated that the invoice which was the 
basis for the Department's initiation of this new shipper review is not 
the original or final version of the document, despite Changshan Ltd.'s 
having provided the required company certifications that the 
information provided with its request for review were both complete and 
accurate. See section 351.303(g)(1) of the Department's regulations. As 
such, we continue to find that our initiation of this new shipper 
review was based on documents that failed to establish: 1) the date on 
which the subject merchandise was first entered, or withdrawn from 
warehouse, for consumption, or the date

[[Page 46512]]

on which Changshan Ltd. first shipped the subject merchandise for 
export to the United States; and 2) the date of the first sale to an 
unaffiliated customer in the United States. Therefore, pursuant to 
sections 351.214(b)(2)(iv)(A) and (C) of the Department's regulations, 
the requirements for initiation have not been satisfied.
    We have also considered Changshan Ltd.'s argument that a new 
shipper review can only be rescinded when the respondent withdraws its 
request for review or where there was no entry or sale within the POR 
and the expansion of the POR would prevent the timely completion of the 
review. However, the Department has the authority to rescind a new 
shipper review when, as in the instant case, the Department finds that 
the documentation submitted in support of the request for new shipper 
review is defective; thus, the regulatory requirements for initiating a 
new shipper review have not been satisfied. See, e.g., Honey from the 
People's Republic of China: Notice of Preliminary Results and Partial 
Rescission of Antidumping Duty New Shipper Review, 69 FR 31348 (June 3, 
2004) (the Department rescinded the new shipper review because the 
company failed to provide documentation and certifications establishing 
the first sale to an unaffiliated customer in the United States); See, 
also, Certain Preserved Mushrooms from the People's Republic of China: 
Preliminary Results of Sixth New Shipper and Preliminary Results and 
Partial Rescission of Fourth Antidumping Duty Admission Review, 69 FR 
10410 (March 15, 2004) (the Department rescinded the new shipper review 
with respect to XITIC because it failed to provide proper 
certifications in accordance with section 351.214(b)(ii)(B) of the 
Department's regulations based on data contained in its questionnaire 
response); Honey from the People's Republic of China: Partial 
Rescission of Antidumping Duty New Shipper Review, 68 FR 4760 (January 
30, 2003) (the Department rescinded the new shipper review of Sichuan 
Dubao because the company failed to identify the correct name of the 
exporter and producer of the subject merchandise). Accordingly, we are 
rescinding this new shipper review of candles.

Cash Deposit Requirements

    The Department will notify CBP that bonding is no longer permitted 
to fulfill security requirements for shipments from Changshan Ltd. of 
petroleum wax candles from the PRC that are entered, or withdrawn from 
warehouse, for consumption in the United States on or after the date of 
publication of this rescission notice in the Federal Register, and that 
a cash deposit of 108.30 percent ad valorem should be collected for any 
entries of petroleum wax candles exported by Changshan Ltd.

Assessment of Antidumping Duties

    The Department will instruct CBP to assess antidumping duties on 
all appropriate entries. Since we are rescinding this antidumping duty 
new shipper review with respect to Changshan Ltd., the PRC-wide rate of 
108.30 percent in effect at the time of entry applies to all exports of 
candles from the PRC by Changshan Ltd. entered, or withdrawn from 
warehouse, for consumption during the POR (August 1, 2002 through July 
31, 2003). The Department will issue appropriate assessment 
instructions directly to CBP within 15 days of publication of this 
notice of rescission of antidumping duty new shipper review.

Notification to Importers

    This notice also serves as a reminder to importers of their 
responsibility under section 351.402(f)(2) of the Department's 
regulations to file a certificate regarding the reimbursement of 
antidumping duties prior to liquidation of the relevant entries during 
this review period. Failure to comply with this requirement could 
result in the Secretary's presumption that reimbursement of antidumping 
duties occurred and the subsequent assessment of double antidumping 
duties.
    This notice also serves as a reminder to parties subject to 
administrative protective orders (APO) of their responsibility 
concerning the disposition of proprietary information disclosed under 
APO in accordance with section 351.305(a)(3) of the Department's 
regulations. Timely written otification of the return/destruction of 
APO material or conversion to judicial protective order is hereby 
requested. Failure to comply with the regulations and terms of an APO 
is a violation which is subject to sanctions.
    We are issuing and publishing this determination and notice in 
accordance with sections 751(a)(2)(B) and 777(i) of the Act.

    Dated: July 26, 2004.
Jeffrey A. May,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 04-17561 Filed 8-2-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-S