[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 7 (Thursday, January 10, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2251-2252]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-00350]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-433-811]


Xanthan Gum From Austria: Preliminary Determination of Sales at 
Less Than Fair Value and Postponement of Final Determination

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

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (``Department'') preliminarily 
determines that xanthan gum from Austria is being, or is likely to be, 
sold in the United States at less than fair value (``LTFV''), as 
provided in section 733 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (``the 
Act''). The period of investigation (``POI'') is April 1, 2011, through 
March 31, 2012. The estimated weighted-average dumping margin of sales 
at LTFV is shown in the ``Preliminary Determination'' section of this 
notice. The final determination will be issued 135 days after 
publication of this preliminary determination in the Federal Register.

DATES: Effective Date: January 10, 2013.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Drew Jackson or Karine Gziryan AD/CVD 
Operations, Office 4, Import Administration, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and 
Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-
4406 or (202) 482-4081, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Scope of the Investigation

    The scope of this investigation covers dry xanthan gum, whether or 
not coated or blended with other products. Further, xanthan gum is 
included in this investigation regardless of physical form, including, 
but not limited to, solutions, slurries, dry powders of any particle 
size, or unground fiber.
    Xanthan gum that has been blended with other product(s) is included 
in this scope when the resulting mix contains 15 percent or more of 
xanthan gum by dry weight. Other products with which xanthan gum may be 
blended include, but are not limited to, sugars, minerals, and salts.
    Xanthan gum is a polysaccharide produced by aerobic fermentation of 
Xanthomonas campestris. The chemical structure of the repeating 
pentasaccharide monomer unit consists of a backbone of two P-1,4-D-
Glucose monosaccharide units, the second with a trisaccharide side 
chain consisting of P-D-Mannose-(1,4)- P-DGlucuronic acid-(1,2) - a-D-
Mannose monosaccharide units. The terminal mannose may be pyruvylated 
and the internal mannose unit may be acetylated.
    Merchandise covered by the scope of this investigation is 
classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States at 
subheading 3913.90.20. This tariff classification is provided for 
convenience and customs purposes; however, the written description of 
the scope is dispositive.

Methodology

    The Department has conducted this investigation in accordance with 
section 731 of the Act. Constructed export prices have been calculated 
in accordance with section 772 of the Act. Normal value (``NV'') has 
been calculated in accordance with section 773 of the Act.
    For a full description of the methodology underlying our 
conclusions, see ``Decision Memorandum for Preliminary Determination 
for the Antidumping Duty Investigation: Xanthan Gum from Austria,'' 
(``Preliminary Decision Memorandum'') from Christian Marsh, Deputy 
Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Operations, 
to Paul Piquado, Assistant Secretary for Import Administration, dated 
concurrently with this determination and hereby adopted by this notice. 
The Preliminary Decision Memorandum is a public document and is made 
available to the public via Import Administration's Antidumping and 
Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (``IA 
ACCESS''). IA ACCESS is available to registered users at https://

[[Page 2252]]

iaaccess.trade.gov, and is available to all parties in the Department's 
Central Records Unit, located at room 7046 of the main Department of 
Commerce building. In addition, a complete version of the Preliminary 
Decision Memorandum can be found on the Internet at http://www.trade.gov/ia/. The signed Preliminary Decision Memorandum and the 
electronic versions of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum are 
identical in content.

Preliminary Determination

    The Department preliminarily determines that the following 
weighted-average dumping margins exist:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Weighted-
                                                                average
                    Exporter/Manufacturer                       dumping
                                                                margin
                                                               (percent)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jungbunzlauer Austria AG....................................       17.18
All Others..................................................       17.18
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The ``All Others'' rate is based on the weighted-average dumping 
margin calculated for Jungbunzlauer Austria AG, the only company for 
which the Department calculated a rate.\1\
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    \1\ See section 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act.
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Disclosure and Public Comment

    We will disclose the calculations performed to parties in this 
proceeding within five days of the date of publication of this notice 
in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).
    Case briefs or other written comments may be submitted to the 
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration no later than seven days 
after the date on which the final verification report is issued in this 
proceeding and rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in case 
briefs, may be submitted no later than five days after the deadline 
date for case briefs.\2\ A table of contents, list of authorities used 
and an executive summary of issues should accompany any briefs 
submitted to the Department. This summary should be limited to five 
pages total, including footnotes. 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. All documents must be filed electronically 
using IA ACCESS. An electronically filed document must be received 
successfully in its entirety by the Department's electronic records 
system, IA ACCESS, by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, within 30 days 
after the date of publication of this notice.\3\ Requests should 
contain the party's name, address, and telephone number, the number of 
participants, and a list of the issues to be discussed. If a request 
for a hearing is made, the Department intends to hold the hearing at 
the U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue 
NW, Washington, DC 20230, at a time and location to be determined. 
Parties should confirm by telephone the date, time, and location of the 
hearing two days before the scheduled date.
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    \2\ See 19 CFR 351.309.
    \3\ See 19 CFR 351.310(c).
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Postponement of Final Determination and Extension of Provisional 
Measures

    Pursuant to requests from interested parties, we are postponing the 
final determination and extending the provisional measures from a four-
month period to not more than six months. Accordingly, we will make our 
final determination no later than 135 days after the date of 
publication of this preliminary determination, pursuant to section 
735(a)(2) of the Act.\4\
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    \4\ See also 19 CFR 351.210(e).
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Suspension of Liquidation

    In accordance with section 733(d)(2) of the Act, we are directing 
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (``CBP'') to suspend liquidation of 
all entries of xanthan gum from Austria as described in the scope of 
the investigation section entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for 
consumption on or after the date of publication of this notice in the 
Federal Register.
    We will instruct CBP to require a cash deposit \5\ equal to the 
weighted-average amount by which the NV exceeds constructed export 
price, as indicated in the chart above. These suspension of liquidation 
instructions will remain in effect until further notice.
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    \5\ See Modification of Regulations Regarding the Practice of 
Accepting Bonds During the Provisional Measures Period in 
Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Investigations, 76 FR 61042 
(October 3, 2011).
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International Trade Commission (``ITC'') Notification

    In accordance with section 733(f) of the Act, we have notified the 
ITC of our preliminary affirmative determination of sales at LTFV. If 
our final determination is affirmative, the ITC will determine before 
the later of 120 days after the date of this preliminary determination 
or 45 days after our final determination whether these imports are 
materially injuring, or threaten material injury to, the U.S. industry.
    This determination is issued and published in accordance with 
sections 733(f) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(c).

     Dated: January 3, 2013.
Paul Piquado,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.

List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum

 1. Scope of the Investigation
 2. Targeted Dumping Allegation
 3. Targeted Dumping Test
 4. Fair Value Comparisons
 5. Product Comparisons
 6. Date of Sale
 7. Constructed Export Price
 8. Normal Value
    a. Home Market Viability
    b. Level of Trade
    c. Cost of Production Analysis
    d. Calculation of COP
    e. Test of Comparison Market Sales Prices
    f. Results of COP Test
 9. Affiliation
10. Currency Conversion
11. Verification

[FR Doc. 2013-00350 Filed 1-9-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P