[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 215 (Friday, November 6, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68843-68845]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-28453]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[C-570-027]


Countervailing Duty Investigation of Certain Corrosion-Resistant 
Steel Products From the People's Republic of China: Preliminary 
Affirmative Determination

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

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (the Department) preliminarily 
determines that countervailable subsidies are being provided to 
producers and exporters of certain corrosion-resistant steel products 
(corrosion-resistant steel) from the People's Republic of China (PRC). 
The period of investigation is January 1, 2014, through December 31, 
2014. We

[[Page 68844]]

invite interested parties to comment on this preliminary determination.

DATES: Effective date: November 6, 2015.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Emily Halle, David Lindgren, or 
Spencer Toubia, AD/CVD Operations, Office VII, Enforcement and 
Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of 
Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 
20230; telephone (202) 482-0176, (202) 482-3870, or (202) 482-0123, 
respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Scope of the Investigation

    The products covered by this investigation are corrosion-resistant 
steel products from the PRC. For a complete description of the scope of 
this investigation, see Appendix II.

Methodology

    The Department is conducting this countervailing duty (CVD) 
investigation in accordance with section 701 of the Tariff Act of 1930, 
as amended (the Act). For each of the subsidy programs found 
countervailable, we preliminarily determine that there is a subsidy, 
i.e., a financial contribution by an ``authority'' that gives rise to a 
benefit to the recipient, and that the subsidy is specific.\1\ For a 
full description of the methodology underlying our preliminary 
conclusions, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\2\ A list of 
topics discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is included as 
Appendix I to this notice. 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 (ACCESS). ACCESS is available to registered users at 
http://access.trade.gov, and is available to all parties in the Central 
Records Unit, room B8024 of the main Department of Commerce building. 
In addition, a complete version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum 
can be accessed directly at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/. The 
signed Preliminary Decision Memorandum and the electronic version are 
identical in content.
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    \1\ See sections 771(5)(B) and (D) of the Act regarding 
financial contribution; section 771(5)(E) of the Act regarding 
benefit; and section 771(5A) of the Act regarding specificity.
    \2\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary 
Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination in the Countervailing 
Duty Investigation of Certain Corrosion-Resistant Steel Products 
from the People's Republic of China,'' dated concurrently with, and 
hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
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    The Department notes that, in making these findings, we relied, in 
part, on facts available and, because we find that one or more 
respondents did not act to the best of their ability to respond to the 
Department's requests for information, we drew an adverse inference 
where appropriate in selecting from among the facts otherwise 
available.\3\ For further information, see ``Use of Facts Otherwise 
Available and Adverse Inferences'' in the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum.
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    \3\ See sections 776(a) and (b) of the Act.
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Preliminary Determination and Suspension of Liquidation

    In accordance with section 703(d)(1)(A)(i) of the Act, we 
calculated an individual estimated countervailable subsidy rate for 
YPC.\4\ Additionally, in accordance with sections 703(d) and 
705(c)(5)(A) of the Act, for companies not individually investigated, 
we apply an ``all-others'' rate, which is normally calculated by weight 
averaging the subsidy rates of the companies selected for individual 
investigation by those companies' exports of the subject merchandise to 
the United States. However, under section 705(c)(5)(A)(i) of the Act, 
the all-others rate excludes zero and de minimis rates calculated for 
the exporters and producers individually investigated as well as rates 
based entirely on facts otherwise available. Therefore, we have 
excluded the rates based entirely on facts otherwise available assigned 
to Angang Group Hong Kong Company Ltd. (Angang), Baoshan Iron & Steel 
Co., Ltd. (Baoshan), Duferco S.A. (Duferco), Changshu Everbright 
Material Technology (Everbright), and Handan Iron & Steel Group 
(Handan) from the all-others rate. Because the only individually 
calculated rate that is not zero, de minimis, or based on facts 
otherwise available is the rate calculated for YPC, in accordance with 
section 705(c)(5)(A)(i) of the Act, the rate calculated for YPC is 
preliminarily assigned as the ``all-others'' rate. The preliminary 
estimated countervailable subsidy rates are summarized in the table 
below.
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    \4\ The cooperating, individually-investigated exporter/producer 
is Yieh Phui (China) Technomaterial Co., Ltd. (YPC).

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                Subsidy
                           Company                               rate
                                                               (percent)
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Yieh Phui (China) Technomaterial Co., Ltd...................       26.26
Angang Group Hong Kong Company Ltd..........................      235.66
Baoshan Iron & Steel Co., Ltd...............................      235.66
Duferco S.A., Hebei Iron & Steel Group, and Tangshan Iron         235.66
 and Steel Group Co., Ltd...................................
Changshu Everbright Material Technology.....................      235.66
Handan Iron & Steel Group...................................      235.66
All-Others..................................................       26.26
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    In accordance with section 703(d)(2) of the Act, we will direct 
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to suspend liquidation of all 
entries of corrosion-resistant steel from the PRC as described in the 
``Scope of the Investigation'' entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, 
for consumption on or after the date of publication of this notice in 
the Federal Register. Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.205(d), the Department 
will instruct CBP to require a cash deposit equal to the rests 
indicated above. Section 703(e)(2) of the Act provides that, given an 
affirmative determination of critical circumstances, any suspension of 
liquidation shall apply to unliquidated entries of merchandise entered, 
or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the later of 
(a) the date which is 90 days before the date on which the suspension 
of liquidation was first ordered, or (b) the date on which notice of 
initiation of the investigation was published. On October 29, 2015, we 
preliminarily found that critical circumstances exist for imports 
produced or exported by Angang, Baoshan, Duferco, Everbright, and 
Handan.\5\ Accordingly, for these companies, in accordance with section 
703(e)(2)(A) of the Act, suspension of liquidation of corrosion-
resistant steel from the PRC, as described in the ``Scope of the 
Investigation,'' shall apply to unliquidated entries of merchandise 
entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the 
date which is 90 days before the publication of this notice, the date 
suspension of liquidation is first ordered. Because we find critical 
circumstances do not exist for YPC and for all-other producers and 
exporters, we will begin suspension of liquidation for such firms on 
the date of publication of this notice in the Federal Register.
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    \5\ See Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Investigations of 
Corrosion-Resistant Steel Products from India, Italy, the People's 
Republic of China, the Republic of Korea, and Taiwan: Preliminary 
Determination of Critical Circumstances,'' (signed October 29, 
2015).

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[[Page 68845]]

Verification

    As provided in section 782(i)(1) of the Act, we intend to verify 
the information submitted by the respondents prior to making our final 
determination.

International Trade Commission Notification

    In accordance with section 703(f) of the Act, we will notify the 
International Trade Commission (ITC) of our determination. In addition, 
we are making available to the ITC all non-privileged and non-
proprietary information relating to this investigation. We will allow 
the ITC access to all privileged and business proprietary information 
in our files, provided the ITC confirms that it will not disclose such 
information, either publicly or under an administrative protective 
order, without the written consent of the Assistant Secretary for 
Enforcement and Compliance.
    In accordance with section 705(b)(2) of the Act, if our final 
determination is affirmative, the ITC will make its final determination 
within 45 days after the Department makes its final determination.

Disclosure and Public Comment

    The Department intends to disclose to interested parties the 
calculations performed in connection with this preliminary 
determination within five days of its public announcement.\6\ 
Interested parties may submit case and rebuttal briefs, as well as 
request a hearing.\7\ For a schedule of the deadlines for filing case 
briefs, rebuttal briefs, and hearing requests, see the Preliminary 
Decision Memorandum.
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    \6\ See 19 CFR 351.224(b).
    \7\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)-(d), 19 CFR 351.310(c).
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    This determination is issued and published pursuant to sections 
703(f) and 777(i) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(c).

    Dated: November 2, 2015.
Paul Piquado,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

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

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope Comments
IV. Scope of the Investigation
V. Preliminary Determination of Critical Circumstances
VI. Injury Test
VII. Application of the CVD Law to Imports from the PRC
VIII. Use of Facts Otherwise Available and Adverse Inferences
IX. Subsidies Valuation
X. Benchmarks and Discount Rates
XI. Analysis of Programs
XII. Disclosure and Public Comment
XIII. Conclusion

Appendix II--Scope of the Investigation

    The products covered by this investigation are certain flat-
rolled steel products, either clad, plated, or coated with 
corrosion-resistant metals such as zinc, aluminum, or zinc-, 
aluminum-, nickel- or iron-based alloys, whether or not corrugated 
or painted, varnished, laminated, or coated with plastics or other 
non-metallic substances in addition to the metallic coating. The 
products covered include coils that have a width of 12.7 mm or 
greater, regardless of form of coil (e.g., in successively 
superimposed layers, spirally oscillating, etc.). The products 
covered also include products not in coils (e.g., in straight 
lengths) of a thickness less than 4.75 mm and a width that is 12.7 
mm or greater and that measures at least 10 times the thickness. The 
products covered also include products not in coils (e.g., in 
straight lengths) of a thickness of 4.75 mm or more and a width 
exceeding 150 mm and measuring at least twice the thickness. The 
products described above may be rectangular, square, circular, or 
other shape and include products of either rectangular or non-
rectangular cross-section where such cross-section is achieved 
subsequent to the rolling process, i.e., products which have been 
``worked after rolling'' (e.g., products which have been beveled or 
rounded at the edges). For purposes of the width and thickness 
requirements referenced above:
    (1) Where the nominal and actual measurements vary, a product is 
within the scope if application of either the nominal or actual 
measurement would place it within the scope based on the definitions 
set forth above, and
    (2) where the width and thickness vary for a specific product 
(e.g., the thickness of certain products with non-rectangular cross-
section, the width of certain products with non-rectangular shape, 
etc.), the measurement at its greatest width or thickness applies.
    Steel products included in the scope of this investigation are 
products in which: (1) Iron predominates, by weight, over each of 
the other contained elements; (2) the carbon content is 2 percent or 
less, by weight; and (3) none of the elements listed below exceeds 
the quantity, by weight, respectively indicated:

 2.50 percent of manganese, or
 3.30 percent of silicon, or
 1.50 percent of copper, or
 1.50 percent of aluminum, or
 1.25 percent of chromium, or
 0.30 percent of cobalt, or
 0.40 percent of lead, or
 2.00 percent of nickel, or
 0.30 percent of tungsten (also called wolfram), or
 0.80 percent of molybdenum, or
 0.10 percent of niobium (also called columbium), or
 0.30 percent of vanadium, or
 0.30 percent of zirconium

    Unless specifically excluded, products are included in this 
scope regardless of levels of boron and titanium.
    For example, specifically included in this scope are vacuum 
degassed, fully stabilized (commonly referred to as interstitial-
free (IF)) steels and high strength low alloy (HSLA) steels. IF 
steels are recognized as low carbon steels with micro-alloying 
levels of elements such as titanium and/or niobium added to 
stabilize carbon and nitrogen elements. HSLA steels are recognized 
as steels with micro-alloying levels of elements such as chromium, 
copper, niobium, titanium, vanadium, and molybdenum.
    Furthermore, this scope also includes Advanced High Strength 
Steels (AHSS) and Ultra High Strength Steels (UHSS), both of which 
are considered high tensile strength and high elongation steels.
    All products that meet the written physical description, and in 
which the chemistry quantities do not exceed any one of the noted 
element levels listed above, are within the scope of this 
investigation unless specifically excluded. The following products 
are outside of and/or specifically excluded from the scope of this 
investigation:
     Flat-rolled steel products either plated or coated with 
tin, lead, chromium, chromium oxides, both tin and lead (``terne 
plate''), or both chromium and chromium oxides (``tin free steel''), 
whether or not painted, varnished or coated with plastics or other 
non-metallic substances in addition to the metallic coating;
     Clad products in straight lengths of 4.7625 mm or more 
in composite thickness and of a width which exceeds 150 mm and 
measures at least twice the thickness; and
     Certain clad stainless flat-rolled products, which are 
three-layered corrosion-resistant flat-rolled steel products less 
than 4.75 mm in composite thickness that consist of a flat-rolled 
steel product clad on both sides with stainless steel in a 20%-60%-
20% ratio.
    The products subject to the investigation are currently 
classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States 
(HTSUS) under item numbers: 7210.30.0030, 7210.30.0060, 
7210.41.0000, 7210.49.0030, 7210.49.0091, 7210.49.0095, 
7210.61.0000, 7210.69.0000, 7210.70.6030, 7210.70.6060, 
7210.70.6090, 7210.90.6000, 7210.90.9000, 7212.20.0000, 
7212.30.1030, 7212.30.1090, 7212.30.3000, 7212.30.5000, 
7212.40.1000, 7212.40.5000, 7212.50.0000, and 7212.60.0000.
    The products subject to the investigation may also enter under 
the following HTSUS item numbers: 7210.90.1000, 7215.90.1000, 
7215.90.3000, 7215.90.5000, 7217.20.1500, 7217.30.1530, 
7217.30.1560, 7217.90.1000, 7217.90.5030, 7217.90.5060, 
7217.90.5090, 7225.91.0000, 7225.92.0000, 7225.99.0090, 
7226.99.0110, 7226.99.0130, 7226.99.0180, 7228.60.6000, 
7228.60.8000, and 7229.90.1000.
    The HTSUS subheadings above are provided for convenience and 
customs purposes only. The written description of the scope of the 
investigation is dispositive.

[FR Doc. 2015-28453 Filed 11-5-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P