[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 75 (Tuesday, April 20, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20670-20671]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-9008]


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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE

[Docket No. WTO/DS402]


WTO Dispute Settlement Proceeding Regarding United States--Use of 
Zeroing in Anti-Dumping Measures Involving Products From Korea

AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Office of the United States Trade Representative 
(``USTR'') is providing notice that on April 8, 2010, received a 
request from the Republic of Korea (``Korea'') for the establishment of 
a dispute settlement panel under the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing 
the World Trade Organization (``WTO Agreement'') concerning certain 
issues relating to the imposition of antidumping measures on stainless 
steel plate in coils, stainless steel sheet and strip in coils, and 
diamond sawblades and parts thereof from Korea. That request may be 
found at http://www.wto.org in a document designated as WT/DS402/3. 
USTR invites written comments from the public concerning the issues 
raised in this dispute.

DATES: Although USTR will accept any comments received during the 
course of the dispute settlement proceedings, comments should be 
submitted on or before May 18, 2010, to be assured of timely 
consideration by USTR.

ADDRESSES: Public comments should be submitted electronically to http://www.regulations.gov, docket number USTR-2009-0040. If you are unable 
to provide submissions by http://www.regulations.gov, please contact 
Sandy McKinzy at (202) 395-9483 to arrange for an alternative method of 
transmission. If (as explained below) the comment contains confidential 
information, then the comment should be submitted by fax only to Sandy 
McKinzy at (202) 395-3640.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Leigh Bacon, Associate General 
Counsel, Office of the United States Trade Representative, 600 17th 
Street, NW., Washington, DC 20508, (202) 395-5859.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 127(b) of the Uruguay Round 
Agreements Act (URAA) (19 U.S.C. 2527(b)(1)) requires that notice and 
opportunity for comment be provided after the United States submits or 
receives a request for the establishment of a WTO dispute settlement 
panel. Consistent with this obligation, USTR is providing notice that 
Korea has requested the establishment of a dispute settlement panel 
pursuant to the WTO Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the 
Settlement of Disputes (``DSU''). If such a panel is established 
pursuant to the DSU, such panel, which would hold its meetings in 
Geneva, Switzerland, would be expected to issue a report on its 
findings and recommendations within nine months after it is 
established.

Major Issues Raised by Korea

    In its request for establishment of a panel, Korea challenges the 
use by the U.S. Department of Commerce (``Commerce'') of what Korea 
describes as ``the practice of `zeroing' negative dumping margins in 
calculating overall weighted average margins of dumping'' in the final 
and amended final determinations in the investigation with respect to 
stainless steel plate in coils from Korea,\1\ in the final and amended 
final determinations in the investigation with respect to stainless 
steel sheet and strip in coils from Korea,\2\ and in the final and 
amended final determinations in the investigation with respect to 
diamond sawblades and parts thereof from Korea.\3\ Korea states that it

[[Page 20671]]

considers these actions to be inconsistent with the obligations of the 
United States under Article 2.4.2 of the Agreement on Implementation of 
Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994.
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    \1\ See Notice of Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair 
Value: Stainless Steel Plate in Coils (``SSPC'') from the Republic 
of Korea, 64 FR 15444 (Mar. 31, 1999), as amended by Notice of 
Amendment of Final Determinations of Sales at Less Than Fair Value: 
Stainless Steel Plate in Coils From the Republic of Korea; and 
Stainless Steel Sheet and Strip in Coils From the Republic of Korea, 
66 FR 45279 (Aug. 28, 2001); Certain Stainless Steel Plate From 
Belgium, Canada, Italy, Korea, South Africa, and Taiwan, 64 FR 25515 
(May 12, 1999); Antidumping Duty Orders; Certain Stainless Steel 
Plate in Coils From Belgium, Canada, Italy, the Republic of Korea, 
South Africa, and Taiwan, 64 FR 27756 (May 21, 1999), as amended by 
Notice of Amended Antidumping Duty Orders: Certain Stainless Steel 
Plate in Coils From Belgium, Canada, Italy, the Republic of Korea, 
South Africa, and Taiwan, 68 FR 11520 (Mar. 11, 2003), as amended by 
Notice of Amended Antidumping Duty Orders: Certain Stainless Steel 
Plate in Coils From Belgium, Canada, Italy, the Republic of Korea, 
South Africa, and Taiwan, 68 FR 16117 (Apr. 2, 2003), and as amended 
by Notice of Correction to the Amended Antidumping Duty Orders: 
Certain Stainless Steel Plate in Coils From Belgium, Canada, Italy, 
the Republic of Korea, South Africa, and Taiwan, 68 FR 20114 (Apr. 
24, 2003).
    \2\ See Notice of Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair 
Value: Stainless Steel Sheet and Strip in Coils From the Republic of 
Korea, 64 FR 30664 (June 8, 1999); Notice of Amendment of Final 
Determinations of Sales at Less Than Fair Value: Stainless Steel 
Plate in Coils From the Republic of Korea; and Stainless Steel Sheet 
and Strip in Coils From the Republic of Korea, 66 FR 45279 (Aug. 28, 
2001); Certain Stainless Steel Sheet and Strip From France, Germany, 
Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Mexico, Taiwan, and the United 
Kingdom, 64 FR 40896 (July 28, 1999); Notice of Antidumping Duty 
Order: Stainless Steel Sheet and Strip in Coils from United Kingdom, 
Taiwan and South Korea, 64 FR 40555 (July 27, 1999).
    \3\ See Notice of Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair 
Value and Final Determination of Critical Circumstances: Diamond 
Sawblades and Parts Thereof from the Republic of Korea, 71 FR 29316 
(May 22, 2006), as amended by Amended Final Determination of Sales 
at Less Than Fair Value: Diamond Sawblades and Parts Thereof From 
the Republic of Korea, 75 FR 14126 (Mar. 24, 2010); Diamond 
Sawblades and Parts Thereof from China and Korea, Inv. Nos. 731-TA-
1092 and 1093 (Final) (Remand), USITC Pub. 4007 (May 2008), approved 
in Diamond Manufacturers Coalition v. United States, CIT Court No. 
06-00247, 2009 Ct. Intl. Trade LEXIS 6, Slip-Op. 2009-5 (Jan. 13, 
2009); Diamond Sawblades and Parts Thereof From the People's 
Republic of China and the Republic of Korea: Antidumping Duty 
Orders, 74 FR 57145 (Nov. 4, 2009).
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Public Comment: Requirements for Submissions

    Interested persons are invited to submit written comments 
concerning the issues raised in this dispute. Persons may submit public 
comments electronically to http://www.regulations.gov docket number 
USTR-2009-0040. If you are unable to provide submissions by http://www.regulations.gov, please contact Sandy McKinzy at (202) 395-9483 to 
arrange for an alternative method of transmission.
    To submit comments via http://www.regulations.gov, enter docket 
number USTR-2009-0040 on the home page and click ``search''. The site 
will provide a search-results page listing all documents associated 
with this docket. Find a reference to this notice by selecting 
``Notice'' under ``Document Type'' on the left side of the search-
results page, and click on the link entitled ``Submit a Comment.'' (For 
further information on using the http://www.regulations.gov Web site, 
please consult the resources provided on the Web site by clicking on 
``How to Use This Site'' on the left side of the home page.)
    The http://www.regulations.gov site provides the option of 
providing comments by filling in a ``Type Comment and Upload File'' 
field, or by attaching a document. It is expected that most comments 
will be provided in an attached document. If a document is attached, it 
is sufficient to type ``See attached'' in the ``Type Comment and Upload 
File'' field.
    A person requesting that information contained in a comment 
submitted by that person be treated as confidential business 
information must certify that such information is business confidential 
and would not customarily be released to the public by the submitter. 
Confidential business information must be clearly designated as such 
and the submission must be marked ``BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL'' at the top 
and bottom of the cover page and each succeeding page. Any comment 
containing business confidential information must be submitted by fax 
to Sandy McKinzy at (202) 395-3640. A non-confidential summary of the 
confidential information must be submitted to http://www.regulations.gov. The non-confidential summary will be placed in the 
docket and open to public inspection.
    Information or advice contained in a comment submitted, other than 
business confidential information, may be determined by USTR to be 
confidential in accordance with section 135(g)(2) of the Trade Act of 
1974 (19 U.S.C. 2155(g)(2)). If the submitter believes that information 
or advice may qualify as such, the submitter--
    (1) Must clearly so designate the information or advice;
    (2) Must clearly mark the material as ``SUBMITTED IN CONFIDENCE'' 
at the top and bottom of the cover page and each succeeding page; and
    (3) Must provide a non-confidential summary of the information or 
advice.
    Any comment containing confidential information must be submitted 
by fax. A non-confidential summary of the confidential information must 
be submitted to http://www.regulations.gov. The non-confidential 
summary will be placed in the docket and open to public inspection.
    USTR will maintain a docket on this dispute settlement proceeding 
accessible to the public. The public file will include non-confidential 
comments received by USTR from the public with respect to the dispute. 
If a dispute settlement panel is convened or in the event of an appeal 
from such a panel, the U.S. submissions, any non-confidential 
submissions, or non-confidential summaries of submissions, received 
from other participants in the dispute, will be made available to the 
public on USTR's Web site at http://www.ustr.gov, and the report of the 
panel, and, if applicable, the report of the Appellate Body, will be 
available on the Web site of the World Trade Organization, http://www.wto.org.
    Comments will be placed in the docket and open to public inspection 
pursuant to 15 CFR 2006.13, except confidential business information 
exempt from public inspection in accordance with 15 CFR 2006.15 or 
information determined by USTR to be confidential in accordance with 19 
U.S.C. 2155(g)(2). Comments open to public inspection may be viewed on 
the http://www.regulations.gov Web site.

Steven F. Fabry,
Acting Assistant United States Trade Representative for Monitoring and 
Enforcement.
[FR Doc. 2010-9008 Filed 4-19-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3190-W0-P