[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 99 (Thursday, May 22, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29421-29423]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-11900]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-996]


Non-Oriented Electrical Steel From the People's Republic of 
China: Preliminary Affirmative Determinations of Sales at Less Than 
Fair Value and Critical Circumstances

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

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (the Department) preliminarily 
determines that non-oriented electrical steel (NOES) from the People's 
Republic of China (the PRC) is being, or is likely to be, sold to the 
United States at less than fair value (LTFV), as provided in section 
733(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). The period of 
investigation (POI) is January 1, 2013, through June 30, 2013. The 
dumping margin is shown in the ``Preliminary Determination and 
Suspension of Liquidation'' section of this notice. Interested parties 
are invited to comment on this preliminary determination.

DATES: Effective May 22, 2014.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sandra Dreisonstok or Yang Jin Chun, 
AD/CVD Operations, Office I, Enforcement and Compliance, International 
Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and 
Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-
0768 and (202) 482-5760, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Scope of the Investigation

    The merchandise subject to this investigation consists of non-
oriented electrical steel (NOES), which includes cold-rolled, flat-
rolled, alloy steel products, whether or not in coils, regardless of 
width, having an actual thickness of 0.20 mm or more, in which the core 
loss is substantially equal in any direction of magnetization in the 
plane of the material. The term ``substantially equal'' means that the 
cross grain direction of core loss is no more than 1.5 times the 
straight grain direction (i.e., the rolling direction) of core loss. 
NOES has a magnetic permeability that does not exceed 1.65 Tesla when 
tested at a field of 800 A/m (equivalent to 10 Oersteds) along (i.e., 
parallel to) the rolling direction of the sheet (i.e., B800 
value). NOES contains by weight more than 1.00 percent of silicon but 
less than 3.5 percent of silicon, not more than 0.08 percent of carbon, 
and not more than 1.5 percent of aluminum. NOES has a surface oxide 
coating, to which an insulation coating may be applied.
    NOES is subject to this investigation whether it is fully processed 
(i.e., fully annealed to develop final magnetic properties) or semi-
processed (i.e., finished to final thickness and physical form but not 
fully annealed to develop final magnetic properties). Fully processed 
NOES is typically made to the requirements of ASTM specification A 677, 
Japanese Industrial Standards (JIS) specification C 2552, and/or 
International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) specification 60404-8-
4. Semi-processed NOES is typically made to the requirements of ASTM 
specification A 683. However, the scope of this investigation is not 
limited to merchandise meeting the ASTM, JIS and IEC specifications 
noted immediately above.
    NOES is sometimes referred to as cold-rolled non-oriented (CRNO), 
non-grain oriented (NGO), non-oriented (NO), or cold-rolled non-grain 
oriented (CRNGO) electrical steel. These terms are interchangeable.
    Excluded from the scope of this investigation are flat-rolled 
products not in coils that, prior to importation into the United 
States, have been cut to a shape and undergone all punching, coating, 
or other operations necessary for classification in Chapter 85 of the 
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) as a part 
(i.e., lamination) for use in a device such as a motor, generator, or 
transformer.
    The subject merchandise is provided for in subheadings 
7225.19.0000, 7226.19.1000, and 7226.19.9000 of the HTSUS. Subject 
merchandise may also be entered under subheadings 7225.50.8085, 
7225.99.0090, 7226.92.5000, 7226.92.7050, 7226.92.8050, 7226.99.0180 of 
the HTSUS. Although HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and 
customs purposes, the written description of the scope is dispositive.

Scope Comments

    For a complete discussion of scope comments received from 
interested parties and changes the Department made to the scope of the 
investigation, see Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\1\ The ``Scope of 
the

[[Page 29422]]

Investigation'' section above reflects all changes.
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    \1\ See Memorandum from Senior Advisor Gary Taverman to Acting 
Assistant Secretary Ronald K. Lorentzen entitled ``Decision 
Memorandum for the Preliminary Determination in the Less Than Fair 
Value Investigation of Non-Oriented Electrical Steel from the 
People's Republic of China'' dated concurrently with this notice and 
hereby adopted by this notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
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Postponement of the Preliminary Determination

    On February 28, 2014, AK Steel Corporation (the petitioner) made a 
timely request for a 50-day postponement of the preliminary 
determinations for this and the other concurrent NOES LTFV 
investigations, pursuant to section 733(c)(1)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 
351.205(b)(2) and (e).\2\ On March 5, 2014, we published our notice of 
postponement of the preliminary determinations by 50 days in accordance 
with sections 733(c)(1)(A) and (2) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(f).\3\ 
As a result of the postponement, the revised deadline for the 
preliminary determination of this investigation is now May 15, 2014.
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    \2\ See letter from the petitioner to the Secretary of Commerce, 
``Non-Oriented Electrical Steel from the People's Republic of China, 
Germany, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Sweden and Taiwan: Request 
for Postponement of the Preliminary Determinations,'' dated February 
28, 2014.
    \3\ See Non-Oriented Electrical Steel from the People's Republic 
of China, Germany, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Sweden and Taiwan: 
Postponement of Preliminary Determinations of Antidumping Duty 
Investigations, 79 FR 13987 (March 12, 2014).
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Methodology

    The Department conducted this LTFV investigation in accordance with 
section 731 of the Act. Because none of the potential respondents in 
this investigation submitted separate rate applications, they are 
considered to be part of the PRC-wide entity. Because the PRC-wide 
entity did not provide necessary quantity-and-value data the Department 
requested, the PRC-wide entity failed to cooperate by not acting to the 
best of its ability. Therefore, the Department is assigning to the PRC-
wide entity a rate based on facts available with an adverse 
inference.\4\ For further information, see the ``Application of Adverse 
Facts Available'' section in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\5\ 
The Preliminary Decision Memorandum is a public document and is on file 
electronically via Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping and 
Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (IA ACCESS). 
IA ACCESS is available to registered users at http://iaaccess.trade.gov, and is available to all parties in the Central 
Records Unit, room 7046 of the main Department of Commerce building. In 
addition, a complete version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum can 
be accessed directly on the Internet at http://www.trade.gov/enforcement/. The signed Preliminary Decision Memorandum and the 
electronic versions of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum are 
identical in content.
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    \4\ See sections 776(a) and (b) of the Act.
    \5\ See Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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Critical Circumstances

    On March 6, 2014, the petitioner alleged that critical 
circumstances exist with respect to imports of NOES from the PRC. In 
accordance with 19 CFR 351.206(c)(2)(i), because the critical 
circumstances allegation was submitted more than 20 days before the 
scheduled date of the preliminary determination, the Department must 
issue a preliminary critical circumstances determination not later than 
the date of the preliminary determination.\6\
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    \6\ See, e.g., Change in Policy Regarding Timing of Issuance of 
Critical Circumstances Determinations, 63 FR 55364 (October 15, 
1998).
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    In accordance with section 733(e)(1) of the Act, we preliminarily 
find critical circumstances exist with respect to the PRC-wide entity 
in this investigation. For a full discussion of our preliminary 
critical circumstances determination, see the ``Critical 
Circumstances'' section of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

Preliminary Determination and Suspension of Liquidation

    The Department preliminarily assigns the PRC-wide entity a rate of 
407.52 percent as an adverse facts available rate. As described above, 
the Department found that critical circumstances exist with respect to 
the PRC-wide entity. Furthermore, consistent with our practice, where 
the product under investigation is also subject to a concurrent 
countervailing duty investigation, we instruct U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection (CBP) to require a cash deposit equal to the amount by which 
the normal value exceeds the export price or constructed export price, 
less the amount of the countervailing duty determined to constitute an 
export subsidy. In this LTFV investigation, with regard to PRC-wide 
entity, export subsidies constitute 1.57 percent \7\ of the 
preliminarily calculated countervailing duty rate in the concurrent 
countervailing duty investigation, and, thus, we will offset the PRC-
wide rate of 407.52 percent by the countervailing duty rate 
attributable to export subsidies (i.e., 1.57 percent) to calculate the 
cash deposit rate for this LTFV investigation. In accordance with 
sections 733(e)(2)(A) of the Act, we will direct CBP to suspend 
liquidation of all entries of NOES from the PRC that are entered, or 
withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date 90 days 
prior to the date of publication of this notice in the Federal 
Register, and to require a cash deposit for such entries.
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    \7\ The following subsidy programs in the preliminary 
determination of the concurrent countervailing duty investigation 
are export subsidies: Preferential Export Financing from the Export-
Import Bank of China (1.06 percent) and Tax Refunds for Reinvestment 
of FIE Profits in Export-Oriented Enterprises (0.51 percent). See 
Non-Oriented Electrical Steel From the People's Republic of China: 
Preliminary Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination, 
Preliminary Affirmative Critical Circumstances Determination, and 
Alignment of Final Countervailing Duty Determination With Final 
Antidumping Duty Determination, 79 FR 16293 (March 25, 2014), and 
the accompanying Preliminary Decision Memorandum at 12-13.
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Disclosure and Public Comment

    Because the Department has reached its conclusions on the basis of 
adverse facts available, the calculations performed in connection with 
this preliminary determination are not proprietary in nature, and are 
described in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. Case briefs may be 
submitted to IA ACCESS no later than 30 days after the publication of 
this preliminary determination in the Federal Register, 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.\8\ 
Rebuttal briefs may respond only to arguments raised in case briefs and 
should identify the arguments to which it is responding.\9\ For any 
briefs filed on scope issues, parties must file separate and identical 
documents on each of the records for all of the concurrent LTFV and 
countervailing duty investigations. Parties who submit arguments are 
requested to submit with the argument: (1) A statement of the issue; 
(2) a brief summary of the argument; and (3) a table of 
authorities.\10\
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    \8\ See 19 CFR 351.309.
    \9\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2).
    \10\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2).
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    Interested parties who wish to request a hearing, or to participate 
if one is requested, must submit a written request using IA ACCESS 
within 30 days after the publication of this preliminary determination 
in the Federal Register.\11\ An electronically filed hearing request 
must be received successfully in its entirety by IA ACCESS by 5:00 p.m. 
Eastern Time within 30 days after the date of publication of this 
notice.\12\ Hearing 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 hearing

[[Page 29423]]

request is submitted, 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 date and time to be determined. Parties will 
be notified of the date and time of any hearing.
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    \11\ See 19 CFR 351.310(c).
    \12\ Id.
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U.S. 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. 
Because the preliminary determination in this proceeding is 
affirmative, section 735(b)(2) of the Act requires that the ITC make 
its final determination as to whether the domestic industry in the 
United States is materially injured, or threatened with material 
injury, by reason of imports of NOES from the PRC before the later of 
120 days after the date of this preliminary determination or 45 days 
after our final determination.
    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: May 15, 2014.
Ronald K. Lorentzen,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix--List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum

1. Summary
2. Background
3. Period of Investigation
4. Scope Comments
5. Scope of the Investigation
6. PRC-Wide Entity
7. Application of Adverse Facts Available
8. Rate for the PRC-Wide Entity
9. Corroboration
10. Critical Circumstances
11. Recommendation

[FR Doc. 2014-11900 Filed 5-21-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P