[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 39 (Thursday, February 27, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11085-11088]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-04343]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[C-570-013]


Carbon and Certain Alloy Steel Wire Rod From the People's 
Republic of China: Initiation of Countervailing Duty Investigation

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, formerly Import Administration, 
International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.


DATES: Effective Date: February 27, 2014.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rebecca Trainor at (202) 482-4007 or 
Irene Darzenta Tzafolias at (202) 482-0922, AD/CVD Operations, 
Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW., 
Washington, DC 20230.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Petition

    On January 31, 2013, the Department of Commerce (the Department) 
received a countervailing duty (CVD) petition concerning imports of 
carbon and certain alloy steel wire rod (steel wire rod) from the 
People's Republic of China (PRC), filed in proper form, on behalf of 
ArcelorMittal USA LLC, Charter Steel, Evraz Pueblo (formerly Evraz 
Rocky Mountain Steel), Gerdau Ameristeel US Inc., Keystone Consolidated 
Industries, Inc., and Nucor Corporation (collectively, the 
petitioners).\1\ The CVD petition was accompanied by an antidumping 
duty (AD) petition with respect to the PRC.\2\ The petitioners are 
domestic producers of steel wire rod. On February 5, 2014, the 
Department requested information and clarification for certain portions 
of the petition.\3\ The petitioners filed their response to this 
request on February 11, 2014.\4\
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    \1\ See Petition for the Imposition of Countervailing Duties on 
Imports of Carbon and Certain Alloy Steel Wire Rod from the People's 
Republic of China, dated January 31, 2013 (CVD petition or 
petition).
    \2\ See Petition for the Imposition of Antidumping Duties on 
Imports of Carbon and Certain Alloy Steel Wire Rod from the People's 
Republic of China, dated January 31, 2013 (AD petition).
    \3\ See Petition for the Imposition of Countervailing Duties on 
Carbon and Certain Alloy Steel Wire Rod from the People's Republic 
of China: Supplemental Questions, dated February 5, 2014.
    \4\ See Petitioners' Response to Commerce Department Request for 
Petition Clarifications--Carbon and Certain Steel Wire Rod from the 
People's Republic of China, dated February 11, 2014.
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    In accordance with section 702(b)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as 
amended (the Act), the petitioners allege that the Government of the 
PRC (GOC) is providing countervailable subsidies (within the meaning of 
sections 701 and 771(5) of the Act) with respect to imports of steel 
wire rod from the PRC, and that imports of steel wire rod from the PRC 
are materially injuring, and threaten material injury to, the domestic 
industry producing steel wire rod in the United States. The Department 
finds that the petitioners filed the petition on behalf of the domestic 
industry because the petitioners are interested parties as defined in 
sections 771(9)(C) and (D) of the Act, and that the petitioners 
demonstrated sufficient industry support with respect to the initiation 
of the investigation the petitioners are requesting.\5\
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    \5\ See ``Determination of Industry Support for the Petition'' 
below.
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Period of Investigation

    The period of investigation (POI) is January 1, 2013, through 
December 31, 2013.

Scope of Investigation

    The product covered by this investigation is steel wire rod from 
the PRC. For a full description of the scope of this investigation, see 
``Scope of Investigation'' at Appendix I of this notice.

Comments on Scope of Investigation

    During our review of the petition, the Department issued questions 
to, and received responses from, the petitioners pertaining to the 
proposed scope in order to ensure that the scope language in the 
petition would be an accurate reflection of the products for which the 
domestic industry is seeking relief. As discussed in the Preamble to 
the regulations,\6\ we are setting aside a period for interested 
parties to raise issues regarding product coverage. The Department 
encourages interested parties to submit such comments by 5:00 p.m. EST 
on March 12, 2014. All comments must be filed on the records of the PRC 
CVD investigation, as well as the concurrent PRC AD investigation.
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    \6\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, 62 FR 27296, 
27323 (May 19, 1997).
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Filing Requirements

    All submissions to the Department must be filed electronically 
using Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Centralized Electronic Service System (IA ACCESS). An electronically 
filed document must be received successfully in its entirety by the 
time and date noted above. Documents excepted from the electronic 
submission requirements must be filed manually (i.e., in paper form) 
with Enforcement and Compliance's APO/Dockets Unit, Room 1870, 
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW., 
Washington, DC 20230, and stamped with the date and time of receipt by 
the deadline noted above.\7\
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    \7\ See 19 CFR 351.303(b). Information regarding IA ACCESS 
assistance can be found at https://iaaccess.trade.gov/help.aspx and 
a handbook can be found at https://iaaccess.trade.gov/help/Handbook%20on%20Electronic%20Filing%20Procedures.pdf.
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Consultations

    Pursuant to section 702(b)(4)(A)(ii) of the Act, the Department 
invited representatives of the GOC for consultations with respect to 
the petition.\8\ Consultations were held with the GOC on February 18, 
2014.\9\
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    \8\ See Letter of Invitation Regarding Countervailing Duty 
Petition on Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod from the People's 
Republic of China, dated January 31, 2014.
    \9\ See Memorandum to the File, ``Consultations with Official 
from the Government of the People's Republic of China on the 
Countervailing Duty Petition Regarding Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire 
Rod from the People's Republic of China,'' dated February 19, 2014.
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Determination of Industry Support for the Petition

    Section 702(b)(1) of the Act requires that a petition be filed on 
behalf of the domestic industry. Section 702(c)(4)(A) of the Act 
provides that a petition meets this requirement if the domestic 
producers or workers who support the petition account for: (i) At least 
25

[[Page 11086]]

percent of the total production of the domestic like product; and (ii) 
more than 50 percent of the production of the domestic like product 
produced by that portion of the industry expressing support for, or 
opposition to, the petition. Moreover, section 702(c)(4)(D) of the Act 
provides that, if the petition does not establish support of domestic 
producers or workers accounting for more than 50 percent of the total 
production of the domestic like product, the Department shall: (i) Poll 
the industry or rely on other information in order to determine if 
there is support for the petition, as required by subparagraph (A); or 
(ii) if there is a large number of producers in the industry, the 
Department may determine industry support using a statistically valid 
sampling method to poll the industry.
    Section 771(4)(A) of the Act defines the ``industry'' as the 
producers as a whole of a domestic like product. Thus, to determine 
whether a petition has the requisite industry support, the statute 
directs the Department to look to producers and workers who produce the 
domestic like product. The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), 
which is responsible for determining whether ``the domestic industry'' 
has been injured, must also determine what constitutes a domestic like 
product in order to define the industry. While both the Department and 
the ITC must apply the same statutory definition regarding the domestic 
like product,\10\ they do so for different purposes and pursuant to a 
separate and distinct authority. In addition, the Department's 
determination is subject to limitations of time and information. 
Although this may result in different definitions of the like product, 
such differences do not render the decision of either agency contrary 
to law.\11\
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    \10\ See section 771(10) of the Act.
    \11\ See USEC, Inc. v. United States, 132 F. Supp. 2d 1, 8 (CIT 
2001) (citing Algoma Steel Corp., Ltd. v. United States, 688 F. 
Supp. 639, 644 (CIT 1988), aff'd 865 F.2d 240 (Fed. Cir. 1989)).
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    Section 771(10) of the Act defines the domestic like product as ``a 
product which is like, or in the absence of like, most similar in 
characteristics and uses with, the article subject to an investigation 
under this title.'' Thus, the reference point from which the domestic 
like product analysis begins is ``the article subject to an 
investigation'' (i.e., the class or kind of merchandise to be 
investigated, which normally will be the scope as defined in the 
petition).
    With regard to the domestic like product, the petitioners do not 
offer a definition of domestic like product distinct from the scope of 
the investigation. Based on our analysis of the information submitted 
on the record, we determined that steel wire rod, as defined in the 
scope of the investigation, constitutes a single domestic like product 
and we analyzed industry support in terms of that domestic like 
product.\12\
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    \12\ See Countervailing Duty Investigation Initiation Checklist: 
Carbon and Certain Alloy Steel Wire Rod from the People's Republic 
of China (CVD Initiation Checklist), at Attachment II, Analysis of 
Industry Support for the Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Petitions Covering Carbon and Certain Alloy Steel Wire Rod from the 
People's Republic of China (Attachment II). This checklist is dated 
concurrently with this notice and on file electronically via IA 
ACCESS. Access to documents filed via IA ACCESS is also available in 
the Central Records Unit, Room 7046 of the main Department of 
Commerce building.
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    In determining whether the petitioners have standing under section 
702(c)(4)(A) of the Act, we considered the industry support data 
contained in the petition with reference to the domestic like product 
as defined in the ``Scope of Investigation'' section above. To 
establish industry support, the petitioners provided the production of 
the domestic like product in 2013 of all supporters of the petition, 
and compared this to the total production of the domestic like product 
for the entire domestic industry.\13\ We relied upon data the 
petitioners provided for purposes of measuring industry support.\14\
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    \13\ See Volume I of the Petition, at 4-5 and Exhibit GEN-1.
    \14\ See CVD Initiation Checklist, at Attachment II.
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    Based on information provided in the petition, supplemental 
submission, and other information readily available to the Department, 
we determine that the petitioners have met the statutory criteria for 
industry support under section 702(c)(4)(A)(i) of the Act because the 
domestic producers (or workers) who support the petition account for at 
least 25 percent of the total production of the domestic like 
product.\15\ Based on information provided in the petition, the 
domestic producers (or workers) have met the statutory criteria for 
industry support under section 702(c)(4)(A)(ii) of the Act because the 
domestic producers (or workers) who support the petition account for 
more than 50 percent of the production of the domestic like product 
produced by that portion of the industry expressing support for, or 
opposition to, the petition. Accordingly, the Department determines 
that the petition was filed on behalf of the domestic industry within 
the meaning of section 702(b)(1) of the Act.\16\
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    \15\ Id.
    \16\ Id.
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    The Department finds that the petitioners filed the petition on 
behalf of the domestic industry because they are interested parties as 
defined in section 771(9)(C) of the Act and they have demonstrated 
sufficient industry support with respect to the countervailing duty 
investigation that they are requesting the Department initiate.\17\
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    \17\ Id.
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Injury Test

    Because the PRC is a ``Subsidies Agreement Country'' within the 
meaning of section 701(b) of the Act, section 701(a)(2) of the Act 
applies to this investigation. Accordingly, the ITC must determine 
whether imports of the subject merchandise from the PRC materially 
injure, or threaten material injury to, a U.S. industry.

Allegations and Evidence of Material Injury and Causation

    The petitioners allege that imports of the subject merchandise are 
benefitting from countervailable subsidies and that such imports are 
causing, or threaten to cause, material injury to the U.S. industry 
producing the domestic like product. The petitioners allege that 
subject imports exceed the negligibility threshold provided for under 
section 771(24)(A) of the Act.\18\
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    \18\ See Volume I of the Petition, at 13 and Exhibit INJ-1; see 
also General Issues Supplement to the Petition, dated February 7, 
2014 (General Issues Supplement), at 6.
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    The petitioners contend that the industry's injured condition is 
illustrated by reduced market share; underselling and price depression 
or suppression; lost sales and revenues; reduced production and 
shipments; anemic capacity utilization; decline in employment 
variables; and decline in financial performance.\19\ We assessed the 
allegations and supporting evidence regarding material injury, threat 
of material injury, and causation, and we determined that these 
allegations are properly supported by adequate evidence and meet the 
statutory requirements for initiation.\20\
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    \19\ See Volume I of the Petition, at 9-20 and Exhibits GEN-6, 
and INJ-1 through INJ-5; see also General Issues Supplement, at 6 
and Exhibit INJ-6.
    \20\ See CVD Initiation Checklist, at Attachment III, Analysis 
of Allegations and Evidence of Material Injury and Causation for the 
Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Petitions Covering Carbon and 
Certain Alloy Steel Wire Rod from the People's Republic of China.
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Initiation of Countervailing Duty Investigation

    Section 702(b)(1) of the Act requires the Department to initiate a 
CVD investigation whenever an interested

[[Page 11087]]

party files a CVD petition on behalf of an industry that: (1) Alleges 
the elements necessary for an imposition of a duty under section 701(a) 
of the Act; and (2) is accompanied by information reasonably available 
to the petitioner supporting the allegations. In the petition, the 
petitioners allege that producers/exporters of steel wire rod in the 
PRC benefited from countervailable subsidies bestowed by the 
government. The Department has examined the petition and finds that it 
complies with the requirements of section 702(b)(1) of the Act. 
Therefore, in accordance with section 702(b)(1) of the Act, we are 
initiating a CVD investigation to determine whether manufacturers, 
producers, or exporters of steel wire rod from the PRC receive 
countervailable subsidies from the government.
    Based on our review of the petition, we find that there is 
sufficient information to initiate a CVD investigation on certain 
alleged programs. For a full discussion of the basis for our decision 
to initiate or not initiate on each program, see PRC CVD Initiation 
Checklist.
    A public version of the initiation checklist is available on IA 
ACCESS and at http://trade.gov/enforcement/news.asp.

Respondent Selection

    For this investigation, the Department intends to select 
respondents based on U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data for 
U.S. imports of subject merchandise during the POI under the following 
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS) numbers: 
7213.91.3011, 7213.91.3015, 7213.91.3020, 7213.91.3093; 7213.91.4500, 
7213.91.6000, 7213.99.0030, 7227.20.0030, 7227.20.0080, 7227.90.6010, 
7227.90.6020, 7227.90.6030, 7227.90.6035, and 7227.90.6085.\21\ We 
intend to release the CBP data under Administrative Protective Order 
(APO) to all parties with access to information protected by APO 
shortly after the announcement of this case initiation. Interested 
parties must submit applications for disclosure under APO in accordance 
with 19 CFR 351.305(b). Instructions for filing such applications may 
be found at http://enforcement.trade.gov/apo/.
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    \21\ While HTS number 7227.90.6085 is not included in the scope, 
information in the petition indicates that certain subject 
merchandise was classified under this number during the POI. See 
Volume I of the Petition, at 8.
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    Interested parties may submit comments regarding the CBP data and 
respondent selection by 5:00 p.m. EST on the seventh calendar day after 
publication of this notice. Comments must be filed in accordance with 
the filing requirements stated above. If respondent selection is 
necessary, we intend to base our decision regarding respondent 
selection upon comments received from interested parties and our 
analysis of the record information within 20 days of publication of 
this notice.

Distribution of Copies of the Petition

    In accordance with section 702(b)(4)(A)(i) of the Act and 19 CFR 
351.202(f), copies of the public version of the petitions have been 
provided to the GOC via IA ACCESS. To the extent practicable, we will 
attempt to provide a copy of the public version of the petition to each 
known exporter (as named in the petition), as provided in 19 CFR 
351.203(c)(2).

ITC Notification

    We notified the ITC of our initiation, as required by section 
702(d) of the Act.

Preliminary Determination by the ITC

    The ITC will preliminarily determine, within 45 days after the date 
on which the petition was filed, whether there is a reasonable 
indication that imports of steel wire rod from the PRC are materially 
injuring, or threatening material injury to, a U.S. industry.\22\ A 
negative ITC determination will result in the investigation being 
terminated; otherwise, this investigation will proceed according to 
statutory and regulatory time limits.
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    \22\ See section 703(a) of the Act.
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Submission of Factual Information

    On April 10, 2013, the Department published Definition of Factual 
Information and Time Limits for Submission of Factual Information: 
Final Rule, 78 FR 21246 (April 10, 2013), which modified two 
regulations related to AD and CVD proceedings: The definition of 
factual information (19 CFR 351.102(b)(21)), and the time limits for 
the submission of factual information (19 CFR 351.301). The final rule 
identifies five categories of factual information in 19 CFR 
351.102(b)(21), which are summarized as follows: (i) Evidence submitted 
in response to questionnaires; (ii) evidence submitted in support of 
allegations; (iii) publicly available information to value factors 
under 19 CFR 351.408(c) or to measure the adequacy of remuneration 
under 19 CFR 351.511(a)(2); (iv) evidence placed on the record by the 
Department; and (v) evidence other than factual information described 
in (i)-(iv). The final rule requires any party, when submitting factual 
information, to specify under which subsection of 19 CFR 351.102(b)(21) 
the information is being submitted and, if the information is submitted 
to rebut, clarify, or correct factual information already on the 
record, to provide an explanation identifying the information already 
on the record that the factual information seeks to rebut, clarify, or 
correct. The final rule also modified 19 CFR 351.301 so that, rather 
than providing general time limits, there are specific time limits 
based on the type of factual information being submitted. These 
modifications are effective for all segments initiated on or after May 
10, 2013, and thus are applicable to this investigation. Please review 
the final rule, available at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/2013/1304frn/2013-08227.txt, prior to submitting factual information in this 
investigation.

Certification Requirements

    Any party submitting factual information in an AD or CVD proceeding 
must certify to the accuracy and completeness of that information.\23\ 
Parties are hereby reminded that the Department issued a final rule 
with respect to certification requirements, effective August 16, 2013. 
Parties are hereby reminded that revised certification requirements are 
in effect for company/government officials as well as their 
representatives. All segments of any AD or CVD proceedings initiated on 
or after August 16, 2013, should use the formats for the revised 
certifications provided at the end of the Final Rule.\24\ The 
Department intends to reject factual submissions if the submitting 
party does not comply with the applicable revised certification 
requirements.
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    \23\ See section 782(b) of the Act.
    \24\ See Certification of Factual Information To Import 
Administration During Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Proceedings, 78 FR 42678 (July 17, 2013) (Final Rule); see also the 
frequently asked questions regarding the Final Rule, available at 
the following: http://enforcement.trade.gov/tlei/notices/factual_info_final_rule_FAQ_07172013.pdf.
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Extension of Time Limits

    On September 20, 2013, the Department published Extension of Time 
Limits, Final Rule, 78 FR 57790 (September 20, 2013), which modified 
one regulation related to AD and CVD proceedings regarding the 
extension of time limits for submissions in such proceedings (19 CFR 
351.302(c)). These modifications are effective for all segments 
initiated on or after October 21, 2013, and thus are applicable to this 
investigation. Please review the final rule, available at http://
www.gpo.gov/

[[Page 11088]]

fdsys/pkg/FR-2013-09-20/html/2013-22853.htm prior to requesting an 
extension.

Notification to Interested Parties

    Interested parties must submit applications for disclosure under 
APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305. On January 22, 2008, the 
Department published Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings: 
Documents Submission Procedures; APO Procedures, 73 FR 3634 (January 
22, 2008). Parties wishing to participate in this investigation should 
ensure that they meet the requirements of these procedures (e.g., the 
filing of letters of appearance as discussed at 19 CFR 351.103(d)).
    This notice is issued and published pursuant to section 777(i) of 
the Act.

    Dated: February 20, 2014.
Paul Piquado,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix I

Scope of the Investigation

    The merchandise covered by this investigation is certain hot-
rolled products of carbon steel and alloy steel, in coils, of 
approximately circular cross section, less than 19.00 mm in actual 
solid cross-sectional diameter. Specifically excluded are steel 
products possessing the above-noted physical characteristics and 
meeting the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) 
definitions for (a) stainless steel; (b) tool steel; (c) high nickel 
steel; (d) ball bearing steel; or (e) concrete reinforcing bars and 
rods. Also excluded are free cutting steel (also known as free 
machining steel) products (i.e., products that contain by weight one 
or more of the following elements: 0.1 percent or more of lead, 0.05 
percent or more of bismuth, 0.08 percent or more of sulfur, more 
than 0.04 percent of phosphorus, more than 0.05 percent of selenium, 
or more than 0.01 percent of tellurium). All products meeting the 
physical description of subject merchandise that are not 
specifically excluded are included in this scope.
    The products under investigation are currently classifiable 
under subheadings 7213.91.3011, 7213.91.3015, 7213.91.3020, 
7213.91.3093; 7213.91.4500, 7213.91.6000, 7213.99.0030, 
7227.20.0030, 7227.20.0080, 7227.90.6010, 7227.90.6020, 
7227.90.6030, and 7227.90.6035 of the HTSUS. Products entered under 
subheadings 7213.99.0090 and 7227.90.6090 of the HTSUS also may be 
included in this scope if they meet the physical description of 
subject merchandise above. Although the HTSUS subheadings are 
provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written 
description of the scope of this proceeding is dispositive.

[FR Doc. 2014-04343 Filed 2-26-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P