[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 234 (Wednesday, December 7, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72789-72791]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-23740]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

A-423-808


Stainless Steel Plate in Coils from Belgium: Final Results of 
Antidumping Duty Administrative Review

AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. 
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: On June 3, 2005, the Department of Commerce (the Department) 
published the preliminary results of the fifth administrative review of 
the antidumping duty order on stainless steel plate in coils (SSPC) 
from Belgium. See Stainless Steel Plate in Coils from Belgium: 
Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Review, 70 FR 32573 (June 3, 
2005) (``Preliminary Results''). This review covers one producer/
exporter, Ugine & ALZ Belgium, NV (U&A Belgium), of the subject 
merchandise. The period of review (POR) is May 1, 2003, through April 
30, 2004. Based on our analysis of the comments received, we have made 
changes to the Preliminary Results. For the final dumping margins see 
the ``Final Results of Review'' section below.

EFFECTIVE DATE: December 7, 2005.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Toni Page or Scott Lindsay at (202) 
482-1398 or (202) 482-0780, respectively; Office of AD/CVD Operations 
6, Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW, 
Washington DC 20230.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On June 3, 2005, the Department published in the Federal Register 
the preliminary results of the fifth administrative review of the 
antidumping duty order on SSPC from Belgium. See Preliminary Results. 
Since the Preliminary Results, the following events have occurred. On 
July 14, 2005, U&A Belgium (Respondent) requested that the Department 
extend the due dates for briefs until July 22, 2005, and rebuttal 
briefs until July 27, 2005. Based on the reasons in Respondent's 
letter, the Department extended the deadline for briefs until July 22, 
2005, and the rebuttal briefs until July 29, 2005. Case briefs from 
Respondent and Allegheny Ludlum, AK Steel Corporation, Butler Armco 
Independent Union, United Steelworkers of America, AFL-CIO/CLC, and 
Zanesville Armco Independent Organization (collectively, Petitioners) 
were timely filed.
    In the Preliminary Results, the Department stated that it would 
issue a supplemental questionnaire to Respondent requesting that it 
clarify a difference between the volume of sales reported in its 
database, and the volume and value of entries observed by the 
Department from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data. The 
Department issued three supplemental questionnaires on this issue and 
received responses from Respondent on July 1, 2005, to the Department's 
May 27, 2005 questionnaire; August 19, 2005, to the Department's August 
2, 2005 questionnaire; and September 21, 2005, and September 27, 2005, 
(in two parts) to the Department's September 13, 2005 questionnaire. 
Petitioners commented on these responses on September 28, 2005, and 
October 11, 2005. Three of these supplemental questionnaire responses 
were received after the due dates for case and rebuttal briefs. As 
such, on October 28, 2005, we established a briefing schedule for the 
issues that surfaced as a result of Respondent's questionnaire 
responses being submitted after the Preliminary Results. On November 4, 
2005, and November 9, 2005, we received briefs and rebuttal briefs for 
the issues raised in Respondent's supplemental questionnaire responses.

Analysis of Comments Received

    The issues raised in all case briefs, rebuttal briefs, and 
additional comments by parties to this administrative review are 
addressed in the Issues and Decision Memorandum for the Final Results 
of the Fifth Administrative Review of the Antidumping Duty Order on 
Stainless Steel Plate in Coils from Belgium, from

[[Page 72790]]

Stephen J. Claeys, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import Administration 
to Joseph A. Spetrini, Acting Assistant Secretary for Import 
Administration (November 30, 2005) (Decision Memorandum), which is 
hereby adopted by this notice. A list of the issues addressed in the 
Decision Memorandum is appended to this notice. The Decision Memorandum 
is on file in the Central Records Unit (CRU), room B-099 of the 
Department of Commerce main building and can be accessed directly at 
http://ia.ita.doc.gov/frn. The paper copy and electronic version of the 
Decision Memorandum are identical in content.

Scope of the Antidumping Duty Order

    The product covered by this order is certain stainless steel plate 
in coils. Stainless steel is an alloy steel containing, by weight, 1.2 
percent or less of carbon and 10.5 percent or more of chromium, with or 
without other elements. The subject plate products are flat-rolled 
products, 254 mm or over in width and 4.75 mm or more in thickness, in 
coils, and annealed or otherwise heat treated and pickled or otherwise 
descaled. The subject plate may also be further processed (e.g., cold-
rolled, polished, etc.) provided that it maintains the specified 
dimensions of plate following such processing. Excluded from the scope 
of this order are the following: (1) Plate not in coils; (2) Plate that 
is not annealed or otherwise heat treated and pickled or otherwise 
descaled; (3) Sheet and strip; and (4) Flat bars.
    The merchandise subject to this order is currently classifiable in 
the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) at 
subheadings: 7219.11.00.30, 7219.11.00.60, 7219.12.00.06, 
7219.12.00.21, 7219.12.00.26, 7219.12.00.51, 7219.12.00.56, 
7219.12.00.66, 7219.12.00.71, 7219.12.00.81, 7219.31.00.10, 
7219.90.00.10, 7219.90.00.20, 7219.90.00.25, 7219.90.00.60, 
7219.90.00.80, 7220.11.00.00, 7220.20.10.10, 7220.20.10.15, 
7220.20.10.60, 7220.20.10.80, 7220.20.60.05, 7220.20.60.10, 
7220.20.60.15, 7220.20.60.60, 7220.20.60.80, 7220.90.00.10, 
7220.90.00.15, 7220.90.00.60, and 7220.90.00.80. Although the HTSUS 
subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the 
written description of the merchandise subject to these orders is 
dispositive.

Changes Since the Preliminary Results

    Based on our analysis of the comments received, we have made 
changes in the calculations for the final dumping margin. The changes 
made since the Preliminary Results are listed under the ``List of 
Issues'' which is appended to this notice. The changes are discussed in 
detail in the Decision Memorandum and the Memorandum to the File 
Through Thomas Gilgunn from Toni Page and Scott Lindsay: Analysis for 
Ugine & ALZ, N.V. Belgium (U&A Belgium) for the Final Results of the 
Fifth Administrative Review of Stainless Steel Plate in Coils (SSPC) 
from Belgium (November 30, 2005) (Final Analysis Memo).

Use of Facts Available

    The record of this review shows that Respondent did not report 
certain sales of SSPC with a nominal thickness of 4.75 mm or greater. 
Section 776(a)(2)(A) of the Act provides that the Department shall use 
facts otherwise available if a respondent ``withholds information that 
has been requested by the administering authority.'' Since Respondent 
has withheld information requested by the Department, the application 
of partial facts otherwise available under section 776(a)(2)(A) of the 
Act is warranted. However, we note that Respondent's decision to 
exclude sales of nominal SSPC in this review relied, in part, on the 
Department's acceptance of Respondent's exclusion of nominal SSPC sales 
in prior reviews of this order. As such, the Department is not applying 
adverse facts available pursuant to section 776(b) of the Act. See the 
Decision Memorandum at Comment 9 for a more complete discussion of the 
Department's analysis. As partial facts available, we have applied the 
weighted-averaged margin calculated using U&A Belgium's reported U.S. 
sales to U&A Belgium's unreported sales of nominal SSPC.
    For a more complete discussion of the Department's use of partial 
facts otherwise available, see the public version of Final Analysis 
Memo.

Final Results of Review

    As a result of our review, we determine that the following 
weighted-average margin exists for the period May 1, 2003, through 
April 30, 2004:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                Margin
                    Manufacturer/Exporter                      (percent)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ugine & ALZ Belgium, NV.....................................        2.96
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Duty Assessment

    The Department shall determine and CBP shall assess antidumping 
duties on all appropriate entries. Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.212(b)(1), 
the Department calculates an assessment rate for each importer of the 
subject merchandise for each respondent. Upon issuance of the final 
results of this administrative review, if any importer-specific 
assessment rates calculated in the final results are above de minimis 
(i.e., at or above 0.5 percent), the Department will issue appraisement 
instructions directly to CBP to assess antidumping duties on 
appropriate entries.
    To determine whether the duty assessment rates covering the period 
were de minimis, in accordance with the requirement set forth in 19 CFR 
351.106(c)(2), for each respondent we calculated importer (or 
customer)- specific ad valorem rates by aggregating the dumping margins 
calculated for all U.S. sales to that importer or customer and dividing 
this amount by the total value of the sales to that importer (or 
customer). Where an importer (or customer)-specific ad valorem rate is 
greater than de minimis, and the respondent has reported reliable 
entered values, we apply the assessment rate to the entered value of 
the importer's/customer's entries during the review period. Where an 
importer (or customer)- specific ad valorem rate is greater than de 
minimis and we do not have reliable entered values, we calculate a per-
unit assessment rate by aggregating the dumping duties due for all U.S. 
sales to each importer (or customer) and dividing this amount by the 
total quantity sold to that importer (or customer). The Department will 
issue appropriate assessment instructions directly to CBP within 15 
days of the final results of this review.

Cash Deposit Requirements

    The following antidumping duty deposit rates will be effective upon 
publication of the final results of this administrative review for all 
shipments of SSPC from Belgium entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, 
for consumption on or after the publication date of these final 
results, as provided for by section 751(a)(1) of the Act: (1) for U&A 
Belgium, the cash deposit rate will be the rate established in the 
final results of this review; (2) if the exporter is not a firm covered 
in this review, but was covered in a previous review or the original 
less-than-fair-value (LTFV) investigation, the cash deposit rate will 
continue to be the company-specific rate established for the most 
recent period; (3) if the exporter is not a firm covered in this 
review, a prior review, or the LTFV investigation, but the manufacturer 
is, the cash deposit rate will be the rate established for the most 
recent period for the manufacturer of the subject merchandise; and (4) 
if neither the exporter nor the

[[Page 72791]]

manufacturer is a firm covered by this review, a prior review, or the 
LTFV investigation, the cash deposit rate shall be the all others rate 
established in the LTFV investigation, which is 9.86 percent ad 
valorem, the ``all others'' rate. See Notice of Final Determination of 
Sales at Less Than Fair Value: Stainless Steel Plate in Coils from 
Belgium, 64 FR 15476 (March 31, 1999). These deposit rates, when 
imposed, shall remain in effect until publication of the final results 
of the next administrative review.

Notification to Importers

    This notice serves as a final reminder to importers of their 
responsibility under 19 CFR 351.402(f)(2) 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 doubled antidumping duties.

Notification Regarding APOs

    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 19 CFR 351.305(a)(5). Timely written 
notification of the return/destruction of APO materials or conversion 
to judicial protective order is hereby requested. Failure to comply 
with the regulations and terms of an APO is a sanctionable violation.
    This administrative review and notice are in accordance with 
sections 751(a)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act.

    Dated: November 30, 2005.
Stephen J. Claeys,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.

APPENDIX

List of Issues

1. Major Inputs
2. U.S. Warehousing Expenses
3. Offsetting Margins with Above-Normal-Value Transactions
4. Prime and Non-Prime Merchandise
5. Revised Entered Values
6. CEP Offset
7. Duty Assessment
8. Whether Sales of SSPC with a Nominal Thickness of 4.75 mm or Greater 
Regardless of Actual Thickness Should Have Been Reported
9. Application of Facts Available
[FR Doc. 05-23740 Filed 12-6-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-S