[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 227 (Wednesday, November 25, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73708-73715]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-29988]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-523-812, A-535-903, A-565-803, A-520-807, A-552-820]


Circular Welded Carbon-Quality Steel Pipe From the Sultanate of 
Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, the United Arab Emirates, and the 
Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value 
Investigations

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

DATES: Effective Date: November 17, 2015.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kate Johnson at (202) 482-4929 (the 
Sultanate of Oman (Oman) and the United Arab Emirates (UAE)); David 
Lindgren at (202) 482-3870 (Pakistan and the Socialist Republic of 
Vietnam (Vietnam)); or Dennis McClure at (202) 482-5973 (the 
Philippines), AD/CVD Operations, Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW., 
Washington, DC 20230.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Petitions

    On October 28, 2015, the Department of Commerce (the Department) 
received antidumping duty (AD) petitions concerning imports of circular 
welded carbon-quality steel pipe (circular welded pipe) from Oman, 
Pakistan, the Philippines, the UAE, and Vietnam, filed in proper form 
on behalf of Bull Moose Tube Company; EXLTUBE; Wheatland Tube, a 
division of JMC Steel Group; and Western Tube and Conduit 
(Petitioners).\1\ The AD petitions were accompanied by a countervailing 
duty (CVD) petition on imports from Pakistan. Petitioners are domestic 
producers of circular welded pipe.\2\
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    \1\ See Petitions for the Imposition of Antidumping and 
Countervailing Duties: Circular Welded Carbon-Quality Steel Pipe 
from the Sultanate of Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, the United 
Arab Emirates, and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, dated October 
28, 2015 (the Petitions).
    \2\ See Volume I of the Petitions, at 2.
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    On November 2 and 6, 2015, the Department requested additional 
information and clarification of certain areas of the Petitions.\3\ 
Petitioners filed

[[Page 73709]]

responses to these requests on November 4, 5, 9 and 10, 2015.\4\
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    \3\ See Letter from the Department to Petitioners entitled ``Re: 
Petitions for the Imposition of Antidumping Duties on Imports of 
Circular Welded Carbon-Quality Steel Pipe from the Sultanate of 
Oman, Pakistan, the Republic of the Philippines, the United Arab 
Emirates, and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and Countervailing 
Duties on Imports of Circular Welded Carbon-Quality Steel Pipe from 
Pakistan: Supplemental Questions,'' dated November 2, 2015 (General 
Issues Supplemental Questionnaire); Letter from the Department to 
Petitioners entitled ``Re: Petition for the Imposition of 
Antidumping Duties on Imports of Circular Welded Carbon-Quality 
Steel Pipe from (country): Supplemental Questions'' on each of the 
country-specific records, dated November 2, 2015; Letter from the 
Department to Petitioners entitled ``Re: Petition for the Imposition 
of Antidumping Duties on Imports of Circular Welded Carbon-Quality 
Steel Pipe from the Philippines: Supplemental Questions,'' dated 
November 6, 2015; and Memorandum from Whitney Schablik to the File, 
dated November 6, 2015.
    \4\ See ``Response to the Department's November 2, 2015 
Questionnaire Regarding Volume I of the Petition for the Imposition 
of Antidumping and Countervailing Duties,'' dated November 4, 2015 
(General Issues Supplement); see also the responses to the 
Department's November 2, 2015 questionnaires regarding the remaining 
antidumping volumes of the Petition for the Antidumping and 
Countervailing Duties, dated November 4-5, 2015; response to the 
Department's November 6, 2015, second supplemental questionnaire 
regarding the Philippines, dated November 9, 2015; Second General 
Issues Supplement to the Petition, dated November 9, 2015 (Second 
General Issues Supplement); and Third General Issues Supplement to 
the Petition, dated November 10, 2015 (Third General Issues 
Supplement).
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    In accordance with section 732(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as 
amended (the Act), Petitioners allege that imports of circular welded 
pipe from Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, the UAE, and Vietnam are 
being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair 
value within the meaning of section 731 of the Act, and that such 
imports are materially injuring, or threatening material injury to, an 
industry in the United States. Also, consistent with section 732(b)(1) 
of the Act, the Petitions are accompanied by information reasonably 
available to Petitioners supporting their allegations.
    The Department finds that Petitioners filed these Petitions on 
behalf of the domestic industry because Petitioners are interested 
parties as defined in section 771(9)(C) of the Act. The Department also 
finds that Petitioners demonstrated sufficient industry support with 
respect to the initiation of the AD investigations that Petitioners are 
requesting.\5\
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    \5\ See the ``Determination of Industry Support for the 
Petitions'' section below.
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Periods of Investigation

    Because the Petitions were filed on October 28, 2015, the period of 
investigation (POI) is, pursuant to 19 CFR 351.204(b)(1), as follows: 
October 1, 2014, through September 30, 2015, for Oman, Pakistan, the 
Philippines, and the UAE, and April 1, 2015, through September 30, 
2015, for Vietnam.

Scope of the Investigations

    The product covered by these investigations is circular welded pipe 
from Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, the UAE, and Vietnam. For a full 
description of the scope of these investigations, see the ``Scope of 
the Investigations,'' in Appendix I of this notice.

Comments on Scope of the Investigations

    During our review of the Petitions, the Department discussed with 
Petitioners the proposed scope to ensure that the scope language in the 
Petitions would be an accurate reflection of the products for which the 
domestic industry is seeking relief.\6\
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    \6\ See Memorandum from Whitney Schablik to The File, dated 
November 6, 2015; see also Second General Issues Supplement, at 
Exhibit I-16.
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    As discussed in the preamble to the Department's regulations, we 
are setting aside a period for interested parties to raise issues 
regarding product coverage (scope). The Department will consider all 
comments received from parties and, if necessary, will consult with 
parties prior to the issuance of the preliminary determination. If 
scope comments include factual information (see 19 CFR 351.102(b)(21)), 
all such factual information should be limited to public information. 
In order to facilitate preparation of its questionnaires, the 
Department requests all interested parties to submit such comments by 
5:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on Monday, December 7, 2015, which is 20 
calendar days from the signature date of this notice.\7\ Any rebuttal 
comments, which may include factual information, must be filed by 5:00 
p.m. ET on Friday, December 17, 2015, which is 10 calendar days after 
the deadline for initial comments.
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    \7\ See 19 CFR 351.303(b).
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    The Department requests that any factual information the parties 
consider relevant to the scope of the investigations be submitted 
during this time period. However, if a party subsequently finds that 
additional factual information pertaining to the scope of the 
investigations may be relevant, the party may contact the Department 
and request permission to submit the additional information. All such 
comments must be filed on the records of each of the concurrent AD and 
CVD investigations.

Filing Requirements

    All submissions to the Department must be filed electronically 
using Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS).\8\ An electronically-
filed document must be received successfully in its entirety by the 
time and date when it is due. 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 18022, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW., 
Washington, DC 20230, and stamped with the date and time of receipt by 
the applicable deadlines.
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    \8\ See Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings: 
Electronic Filing Procedures; Administrative Protective Order 
Procedures, 76 FR 39263 (July 6, 2011); see also Enforcement and 
Compliance; Change of Electronic Filing System Name, 79 FR 69046 
(November 20, 2014) for details of the Department's electronic 
filing requirements, which went into effect on August 5, 2011. 
Information on help using ACCESS can be found at https://access.trade.gov/help.aspx and a handbook can be found at https://access.trade.gov/help/Handbook%20on%20Electronic%20Filling%20Procedures.pdf.
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Comments on Product Characteristics for AD Questionnaires

    The Department will be giving interested parties an opportunity to 
provide comments on the appropriate physical characteristics of 
circular welded pipe to be reported in response to the Department's AD 
questionnaires. This information will be used to identify the key 
physical characteristics of the subject merchandise in order to report 
the relevant factors and costs of production accurately as well as to 
develop appropriate product-comparison criteria.
    Subsequent to the publication of this notice, the Department will 
be releasing a proposed list of physical characteristics and product-
comparison criteria, and interested parties will have the opportunity 
to provide any information or comments that they feel are relevant to 
the development of an accurate list of physical characteristics. 
Specifically, they may provide comments as to which characteristics are 
appropriate to use as: (1) General product characteristics and (2) 
product-comparison criteria. We note that it is not always appropriate 
to use all product characteristics as product-comparison criteria. We 
base product-comparison criteria on meaningful commercial differences 
among products. In other words, although there may be some physical 
product characteristics used by manufacturers to describe circular 
welded pipe, it may be that only a select few product characteristics 
take into account commercially meaningful physical characteristics. In 
addition, interested parties may comment on the order in which the 
physical characteristics should be used in matching products. 
Generally, the Department attempts to list the most

[[Page 73710]]

important physical characteristics first and the least important 
characteristics last.
    All comments and submissions to the Department must be filed 
electronically using ACCESS, as explained above, on the records of the 
Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, the UAE, and Vietnam less-than-fair-
value investigations.

Determination of Industry Support for the Petitions

    Section 732(b)(1) of the Act requires that a petition be filed on 
behalf of the domestic industry. Section 732(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 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 732(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) 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 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,\9\ 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.\10\
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    \9\ See section 771(10) of the Act.
    \10\ 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 
Petitions).
    With regard to the domestic like product, Petitioners do not offer 
a definition of the domestic like product distinct from the scope of 
the investigations. Based on our analysis of the information submitted 
on the record, we determined that circular welded pipe constitutes a 
single domestic like product and we analyzed industry support in terms 
of that domestic like product.\11\
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    \11\ For a discussion of the domestic like product analysis in 
this case, see Antidumping Duty Investigation Initiation Checklist: 
Circular Welded Carbon-Quality Steel Pipe from the Sultanate of Oman 
(Oman AD Checklist), at Attachment II, Analysis of Industry Support 
for the Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Petitions Covering 
Circular Welded Carbon-Quality Steel Pipe from the Sultanate of 
Oman, Pakistan, the Republic of the Philippines, the United Arab 
Emirates, and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (Attachment II); 
Antidumping Duty Investigation Initiation Checklist: Circular Welded 
Carbon-Quality Steel Pipe from Pakistan (Pakistan AD Checklist), at 
Attachment II; Antidumping Duty Investigation Initiation Checklist: 
Circular Welded Carbon-Quality Steel Pipe from the Republic of the 
Philippines (Philippines AD Initiation Checklist), at Attachment II; 
Antidumping Duty Investigation Initiation Checklist: Circular Welded 
Carbon-Quality Steel Pipe from the United Arab Emirates (UAE AD 
Initiation Checklist), at Attachment II; and Antidumping Duty 
Investigation Initiation Checklist: Circular Welded Carbon-Quality 
Steel Pipe from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (Vietnam AD 
Initiation Checklist), at Attachment II. These checklists are dated 
concurrently with this notice and on file electronically via ACCESS. 
Access to documents filed via ACCESS is also available in the 
Central Records Unit, Room B8024 of the main Department of Commerce 
building.
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    In determining whether Petitioners have standing under section 
732(c)(4)(A) of the Act, we considered the industry support data 
contained in the Petitions with reference to the domestic like product 
as defined in the ``Scope of the Investigations,'' in Appendix I of 
this notice. To establish industry support, Petitioners provided their 
shipments of the domestic like product in 2014, and compared their 
shipments to the estimated total shipments of the domestic like product 
for the entire domestic industry.\12\ Because total industry production 
data for the domestic like product for 2014 is not reasonably available 
and Petitioners established that shipments are a reasonable proxy for 
production data,\13\ we relied upon the shipment data provided by 
Petitioners for purposes of measuring industry support.\14\
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    \12\ See General Issues Supplement, at 3-6 and Exhibits I-13 and 
I-14; see also Second General Issues Supplement, at 1 and Exhibits 
I-17 through I-19; and Third General Issues Supplement, at Exhibit 
I-21.
    \13\ See Volume I of the Petitions, at 3 and Exhibit I-2; see 
also General Issues Supplement, at 3-4 and Exhibits I-13 and I-14.
    \14\ For further discussion, see Oman AD Initiation Checklist, 
Pakistan AD Initiation Checklist, Philippines AD Initiation 
Checklist, UAE AD Initiation Checklist, and Vietnam AD Initiation 
Checklist, at Attachment II.
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    Our review of the data provided in the Petitions, General Issues 
Supplement, Second General Issues Supplement, Third General Issues 
Supplement, and other information readily available to the Department 
indicates that Petitioners established industry support.\15\ First, the 
Petitions established support from domestic producers (or workers) 
accounting for more than 50 percent of the total shipments \16\ of the 
domestic like product and, as such, the Department is not required to 
take further action in order to evaluate industry support (e.g., 
polling).\17\ Second, the domestic producers (or workers) met the 
statutory criteria for industry support under section 732(c)(4)(A)(i) 
of the Act because the domestic producers (or workers) who support the 
Petitions account for at least 25 percent of the total shipments of the 
domestic like product.\18\ Finally, the domestic producers (or workers) 
met the statutory criteria for industry support under section 
732(c)(4)(A)(ii) of the Act because the domestic producers (or workers) 
who support the Petitions account for more than 50 percent of the 
shipments of the domestic like product produced by that portion of the 
industry expressing support for, or opposition to, the Petitions.\19\ 
Accordingly, the Department determines that the Petitions were filed on 
behalf of the

[[Page 73711]]

domestic industry within the meaning of section 732(b)(1) of the Act.
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    \15\ Id.
    \16\ As mentioned above, Petitioners established that shipments 
are a reasonable proxy for production data. Section 351.203(e)(1) of 
the Department's regulations states ``production levels may be 
established by reference to alternative data that the Secretary 
determines to be indicative of production levels.''
    \17\ See section 732(c)(4)(D) of the Act; see also Oman AD 
Initiation Checklist, Pakistan AD Initiation Checklist, Philippines 
AD Initiation Checklist, UAE AD Initiation Checklist, and Vietnam AD 
Initiation Checklist, at Attachment II.
    \18\ See Oman AD Initiation Checklist, Pakistan AD Initiation 
Checklist, Philippines AD Initiation Checklist, UAE AD Initiation 
Checklist, and Vietnam AD Initiation Checklist, at Attachment II.
    \19\ Id.
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    The Department finds that Petitioners filed the Petitions on behalf 
of the domestic industry because they are interested parties as defined 
in section 771(9)(C) of the Act and they demonstrated sufficient 
industry support with respect to the AD investigations that they are 
requesting the Department to initiate.\20\
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    \20\ Id.
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Allegations and Evidence of Material Injury and Causation

    Petitioners allege that the U.S. industry producing the domestic 
like product is being materially injured, or is threatened with 
material injury, by reason of the imports of the subject merchandise 
sold at less than fair value. In addition, Petitioners allege that 
subject imports from Oman, Pakistan, the UAE, and Vietnam exceed the 
negligibility threshold provided for under section 771(24)(A) of the 
Act.\21\
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    \21\ See Volume I of the Petitions, at 17-18 and Exhibits I-7 
and I-8; see also General Issues Supplement, at 8-9.
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    With regard to the Philippines, while the allegedly dumped imports 
from the Philippines do not exceed the statutory requirements for 
negligibility, Petitioners allege and provide supporting evidence that 
these imports will imminently exceed the negligibility threshold.\22\ 
Petitioners' arguments are consistent with the statutory criteria for 
``negligibility in threat analysis'' under section 771(24)(A)(iv) of 
the Act, which provides that imports shall not be treated as negligible 
if there is a potential that subject imports from a country will 
imminently exceed the statutory requirements for negligibility.
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    \22\ See Volume I of the Petitions, at 17-18 and Exhibits I-7 
and I-8; see also General Issues Supplement, at 9-10.
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    Petitioners contend that the industry's injured condition is 
illustrated by reduced market share; underselling and price suppression 
or depression; lost sales and revenues; reduced shipments and a plant 
closure leading to job losses; increased inventories and inventory 
overhang in the U.S. market; and decline in profitability.\23\ 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.\24\
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    \23\ See Volume I of the Petitions, at 12-23 and Exhibit I-6 
through I-9; see also General Issues Supplement, at 6-10 and 
Exhibits I-11, I-13 and I-15.
    \24\ See Oman AD Initiation Checklist, Pakistan AD Initiation 
Checklist, Philippines AD Initiation Checklist, UAE AD Initiation 
Checklist, and Vietnam AD Initiation Checklist, at Attachment III, 
Analysis of Allegations and Evidence of Material Injury and 
Causation for the Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Petitions 
Covering Circular Welded Carbon-Quality Steel Pipe from the 
Sultanate of Oman, Pakistan, the Republic of the Philippines, the 
United Arab Emirates, and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
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Allegations of Sales at Less Than Fair Value

    The following is a description of the allegations of sales at less 
than fair value upon which the Department based its decision to 
initiate AD investigations of imports of circular welded pipe from 
Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, the UAE, and Vietnam. The sources of 
data for the deductions and adjustments relating to U.S. price and 
normal value (NV) are discussed in greater detail in the country-
specific initiation checklists.

Export Price

    For Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, the UAE, and Vietnam, 
Petitioners based export price (EP) U.S. prices on average unit values 
(AUVs) of U.S. imports from those countries.\25\ Where applicable, 
Petitioners made deductions from U.S. price for movement expenses 
consistent with the delivery terms.\26\
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    \25\ See Oman AD Initiation Checklist, Pakistan AD Initiation 
Checklist, Philippines AD Initiation Checklist, UAE AD Initiation 
Checklist, and Vietnam AD Initiation Checklist.
    \26\ See Pakistan AD Initiation Checklist and Philippines AD 
Initiation Checklist.
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Normal Value

    For Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, and the UAE, Petitioners 
provided home market price information obtained through market research 
for circular welded pipe produced, and offered for sale, in each of 
these countries.\27\ For all four of these countries, Petitioners 
provided an affidavit or declaration from a market researcher for the 
price information.\28\ Petitioners made no adjustments to the offer 
prices to calculate NV for Oman, Pakistan, or UAE, as no adjustments 
were warranted by the terms associated with the offers.\29\ With regard 
to the Philippines, Petitioners made deductions for value added taxes 
and other expenses, consistent with the terms of sale.\30\
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    \27\ See Oman AD Initiation Checklist, Pakistan AD Initiation 
Checklist, Philippines AD Initiation Checklist, and UAE AD 
Initiation Checklist.
    \28\ Id.; see also Memorandum to the File, ``Telephone Call to 
Foreign Market Researcher,'' on each of the country-specific 
records, dated November 6, 2015 (Oman), November 5, 2015 (Pakistan), 
November 6, 2015 (the Philippines), and November 6, 2015 (the UAE).
    \29\ See Oman AD Initiation Checklist, Pakistan AD Initiation 
Checklist, and UAE AD Initiation Checklist.
    \30\ See Philippines AD Initiation Checklist.
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    For Oman, the Philippines, and the UAE, Petitioners provided 
information that sales of circular welded pipe in the respective home 
markets were made at prices below the cost of production (COP). For 
these countries, Petitioners calculated NV based on constructed value 
(CV).\31\ For further discussion of COP and NV based on CV, see below.
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    \31\ See Oman AD Initiation Checklist, Philippines AD Initiation 
Checklist, and UAE AD Initiation Checklist.
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    With respect to Vietnam, Petitioners stated that the Department has 
found Vietnam to be a non-market economy (NME) country in every 
previous less-than-fair-value investigation.\32\ In accordance with 
section 771(18)(C)(i) of the Act, the presumption of NME status remains 
in effect until revoked by the Department. The presumption of NME 
status for Vietnam has not been revoked by the Department and, 
therefore, remains in effect for purposes of the initiation of this 
investigation. Accordingly, the NV of the product is appropriately 
based on factors of production (FOPs) valued in a surrogate market 
economy country, in accordance with section 773(c) of the Act. In the 
course of this investigation, all parties, and the public, will have 
the opportunity to provide relevant information related to the issues 
of Vietnam's NME status and the granting of separate rates to 
individual exporters.
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    \32\ See Volume III of the Petitions, at 1-2.
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    Petitioners claim that India is an appropriate surrogate country 
because it is a market economy that is at a level of economic 
development comparable to that of Vietnam, it is a significant producer 
of the merchandise under consideration, and the data for valuing FOPs, 
factory overhead, selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses 
and profit are both available and reliable.\33\
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    \33\ Id., at 2-3.
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    Based on the information provided by Petitioners, we believe it is 
appropriate to use India as a surrogate country for initiation 
purposes. Interested parties will have the opportunity to submit 
comments regarding surrogate country selection and, pursuant to 19 CFR 
351.301(c)(3)(i), will be provided an opportunity to submit publicly 
available information to value FOPs within 30 days before the scheduled 
date of the preliminary determination.

Factors of Production

    Petitioners based the FOPs for materials, labor, and energy on a 
petitioning U.S. producer's consumption rates for producing circular 
welded pipe, as they did not

[[Page 73712]]

have access to the consumption rates of Vietnamese producers of the 
subject merchandise.\34\ Petitioners valued the estimated factors of 
production using surrogate values from India.\35\
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    \34\ Id., at 3.
    \35\ Id., at 4-10 and Exhibit III-C; see also, generally, 
Vietnam AD Supplemental Questionnaire Response.
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Valuation of Raw Materials

    Petitioners valued the FOPs for raw materials (i.e., steel, steel 
scrap offset) using reasonably available, public import data for India 
from the Global Trade Atlas (GTA) for the most recent six-month period 
for which data is available.\36\ Petitioners excluded all import values 
from countries previously determined by the Department to maintain 
broadly-available, non-industry-specific export subsidies and from 
countries previously determined by the Department to be NME countries. 
In addition, in accordance with the Department's practice, the average 
import values exclude imports that were labeled as originating from an 
unidentified country. The Department made adjustments to Petitioners' 
calculation of these surrogate values.\37\
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    \36\ See Volume III of the Petitions, at 4-6 and Exhibit III-C-
2; see also, Vietnam AD Supplemental Questionnaire Response at 
Exhibit III-S-5.
    \37\ See Vietnam AD Initiation Checklist.
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Valuation of Labor

    Petitioners valued labor using India labor data published by the 
International Labor Organization (ILO).\38\ Specifically, Petitioners 
relied on industry-specific wage rate data from Chapter 6A of the ILO's 
``Yearbook of Labor Statistics'' publication.\39\ As the Indian wage 
data are daily wages from 2005 and reported in Indian Rupees, 
Petitioners converted the wage rates to hourly rates, adjusted them for 
inflation, and converted them to U.S. Dollars using the average 
exchange rate during the POI.\40\ Petitioners then applied that 
resulting labor rate to the labor hours expended by the U.S. producer 
of circular welded pipe.\41\ The Department made adjustments to 
Petitioners' calculation of the inflator and labor rate.\42\
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    \38\ See Volume III of the Petitions, at 8-9 and Exhibit III-C-
6; see also, Vietnam AD Supplemental Questionnaire Response at 
Exhibit III-S-6.
    \39\ Id.
    \40\ Id.
    \41\ Id.
    \42\ See Vietnam AD Initiation Checklist.
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Valuation of Energy

    Petitioners used public information, as reported by the Central 
Electric Authority (CEA) of India (the Government of India's 
electricity authority), to value electricity.\43\ This 2008 CEA price 
information was converted from Indian Rupees to U.S. Dollars in order 
to be compared to the U.S producer factor usage rates.\44\ The cost of 
natural gas in India was derived from an International Energy Agency 
working paper entitled ``Natural Gas in India,'' and the value was 
reported in U.S. Dollars and million British thermal units (mmBTU).\45\ 
Using universal conversion factors, Petitioners converted that cost 
into a per metric ton price to ensure the proper comparison.\46\
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    \43\ Id. at 7, 11 and Exhibit III-C-4.
    \44\ Id.
    \45\ Id. at 8, 11 and Exhibit III-C-5.
    \46\ Id.
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Valuation of Factory Overhead, Selling, General and Administrative 
Expenses, and Profit

    Petitioners calculated surrogate financial ratios (i.e., 
manufacturing overhead, SG&A expenses, and profit) using the 2014-2015 
audited financial statement of Ratnamani Metals and Tubes, Ltd., an 
Indian producer of circular welded pipe.\47\
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    \47\ Id. at 9-10, 11 and Exhibit III-C-7.
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Normal Value Based on Constructed Value

    Pursuant to section 773(b)(3) of the Act, COP consists of the cost 
of manufacturing (COM), SG&A expenses, financial expenses, and packing 
expenses. For Oman, the Philippines and the UAE, Petitioners calculated 
COM based on Petitioners' experience adjusted for known differences 
between their industry in the United States and the industry of the 
respective country during the proposed POI.\48\ Using publicly-
available data to account for price differences, Petitioners multiplied 
their usage quantities by the submitted value of the inputs used to 
manufacture circular welded pipe steel in each country.\49\ Labor rates 
were derived from publicly-available sources, and multiplied by the 
product-specific usage rates.\50\ To determine factory overhead, SG&A, 
and financial expense rates, Petitioners relied on financial statements 
of producers of comparable merchandise operating in the respective 
foreign country or their own experience.\51\ For Oman and the UAE, we 
made an adjustment to these rates.\52\
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    \48\ See Oman AD Initiation Checklist, Philippines AD Initiation 
Checklist, and UAE AD Initiation Checklist.
    \49\ Id.
    \50\ Id.
    \51\ Id.
    \52\ Id.
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    Because certain home market prices fell below COP, pursuant to 
sections 773(a)(4), 773(b), and 773(e) of the Act, as noted above, 
Petitioners calculated NVs for Oman, the Philippines and the UAE based 
on CV.\53\ Pursuant to section 773(e) of the Act, CV consists of the 
COM, SG&A, financial expenses, packing expenses, and profit. 
Petitioners calculated CV using the same average COM, SG&A, and 
financial expenses, to calculate COP.\54\ Petitioners relied on the 
financial statements of the same producer that they used for 
calculating manufacturing overhead, SG&A, and financial expenses to 
calculate the profit rate for Oman.\55\ For the Philippines and the 
UAE, Petitioners conservatively did not include profit in their CV 
calculations. We continued to apply the same adjustments to 
Petitioners' calculations of factory overhead, SG&A, and financial 
expense rates as we made for the calculation of COP for Oman and the 
UAE.\56\
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    \53\ Id.
    \54\ Id.
    \55\ Id.
    \56\ Id.
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Fair Value Comparisons

    Based on the data provided by Petitioners, there is reason to 
believe that imports of circular welded pipe from Oman, Pakistan, the 
Philippines, the UAE, and Vietnam are being, or are likely to be, sold 
in the United States at less than fair value. Based on comparisons of 
EP to NV in accordance with sections 772 and 773 of the Act, the 
estimated dumping margins for circular welded pipe are as follows: (1) 
Oman ranges from 98.87 to 105.58 percent; \57\ (2) Pakistan is 11.80 
percent; \58\ (3) the Philippines is 21.86 percent; \59\ and (4) the 
UAE ranges from 47.06 to 54.27 percent.\60\
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    \57\ See Oman AD Initiation Checklist.
    \58\ See Pakistan AD Initiation Checklist.
    \59\ See Philippines AD Initiation Checklist.
    \60\ See UAE AD Initiation Checklist.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Based on comparisons of EP to NV, in accordance with section 773(c) 
of the Act, the estimated dumping margin for circular welded pipe from 
Vietnam is 113.18 percent.\61\
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    \61\ See Vietnam AD Initiation Checklist.
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Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations

    Based upon the examination of the AD Petitions on circular welded 
pipe from Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, the UAE, and Vietnam, we 
find that the Petitions meet the requirements of section 732 of the 
Act. Therefore, we are initiating AD investigations to determine 
whether imports of circular welded pipe from Oman, Pakistan, the

[[Page 73713]]

Philippines, the UAE, and Vietnam are being, or are likely to be, sold 
in the United States at less than fair value. In accordance with 
section 733(b)(1)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(b)(1), unless 
postponed, we will make our preliminary determinations no later than 
140 days after the date of this initiation.
    On June 29, 2015, the President of the United States signed into 
law the Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015, which made numerous 
amendments to the AD and CVD law.\62\ The 2015 law does not specify 
dates of application for those amendments. On August 6, 2015, the 
Department published an interpretative rule, in which it announced the 
applicability dates for each amendment to the Act, except for 
amendments contained in section 771(7) of the Act, which relate to 
determinations of material injury by the ITC.\63\ The amendments to 
sections 771(15), 773, 776, and 782 of the Act are applicable to all 
determinations made on or after August 6, 2015, and, therefore, apply 
to these AD investigations.\64\
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    \62\ See Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015, Public Law 
114-27, 129 Stat. 362 (2015).
    \63\ See Dates of Application of Amendments to the Antidumping 
and Countervailing Duty Laws Made by the Trade Preferences Extension 
Act of 2015, 80 FR 46793 (August 6, 2015) (Applicability Notice).
    \64\ Id. at 46794-95. The 2015 amendments may be found at 
https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/1295/text/pl.
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Respondent Selection

    Petitioners named six companies in Pakistan,\65\ two companies in 
the Philippines,\66\ and eight companies in the UAE,\67\ as producers/
exporters of circular welded pipe. Following standard practice in AD 
investigations involving market economy countries, in the event the 
Department determines that the number of companies is large and cannot 
individually examine each company based upon the Department's 
resources, the Department intends to select respondents based on U.S. 
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data for U.S. imports under the 
appropriate Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States numbers 
listed with the scope in Appendix I, below. We also intend to place the 
CBP data on the record within five business days of publication of this 
Federal Register notice. Comments regarding the CBP data and respondent 
selection should be submitted seven calendar days after the placement 
of the CBP data on the record of these investigations. Parties wishing 
to submit rebuttal comments should submit those comments five calendar 
days after the deadline for the initial comments.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \65\ See Volume I of the Petitions, at Exhibit I-3.
    \66\ Id.
    \67\ Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Although the Department normally relies on the number of producers/
exporters identified in the petition and/or import data from CBP to 
determine whether to select a limited number of producers/exporters for 
individual examination in AD investigations, Petitioners identified 
only one company as a producer/exporter of circular welded pipe in 
Oman: Al Jazeera Tube Steel Company.\68\ We currently know of no 
additional producers/exporters of subject merchandise from Oman. 
Accordingly, the Department intends to examine all known producers/
exporters in this investigation (i.e., the company cited above).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \68\ Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Comments must be filed electronically using ACCESS. An 
electronically-filed document must be received successfully in its 
entirety by the Department's electronic records system, ACCESS, by 5:00 
p.m. ET by the date noted above. We intend to make our decision 
regarding respondent selection within 20 days of publication of this 
notice.
    With respect to Vietnam, Petitioners named three companies as 
producers/exporters of circular welded pipe.\69\ In accordance with our 
standard practice for respondent selection in cases involving NME 
countries, we intend to issue quantity-and-value (Q&V) questionnaires 
to each potential respondent and base respondent selection on the 
responses received. In addition, the Department will post the Q&V 
questionnaire along with filing instructions on the Enforcement and 
Compliance Web site at http://www.trade.gov/enforcement/news.asp.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \69\ Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Exporters/producers of circular welded pipe from Vietnam that do 
not receive Q&V questionnaires by mail may still submit a response to 
the Q&V questionnaire and can obtain a copy from the Enforcement and 
Compliance Web site. The Q&V response must be submitted by all Vietnam 
exporters/producers no later than December 1, 2015, which is two weeks 
from the signature date of this notice. All Q&V responses must be filed 
electronically via ACCESS.

Separate Rates

    In order to obtain separate-rate status in an NME investigation, 
exporters and producers must submit a separate-rate application.\70\ 
The specific requirements for submitting a separate-rate application in 
the Vietnam investigation are outlined in detail in the application 
itself, which is available on the Department's Web site at http://enforcement.trade.gov/nme/nme-sep-rate.html. The separate-rate 
application will be due 30 days after publication of this initiation 
notice.\71\ Exporters and producers who submit a separate-rate 
application and are selected as mandatory respondents will be eligible 
for consideration for separate-rate status only if they respond to all 
parts of the Department's AD questionnaire as mandatory respondents. 
The Department requires that respondents from Vietnam submit a response 
to both the Q&V questionnaire and the separate-rate application by 
their respective deadlines in order to receive consideration for 
separate-rate status.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \70\ See Policy Bulletin 05.1: Separate-Rates Practice and 
Application of Combination Rates in Antidumping Investigation 
involving Non-Market Economy Countries (April 5, 2005), available at 
http://enforcement.trade.gov/policy/bull05-1.pdf (Policy Bulletin 
05.1).
    \71\ Although in past investigations this deadline was 60 days, 
consistent with 19 CFR 351.301(a), which states that ``the Secretary 
may request any person to submit factual information at any time 
during a proceeding,'' this deadline is now 30 days.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Use of Combination Rates

    The Department will calculate combination rates for certain 
respondents that are eligible for a separate rate in an NME 
investigation. The Separate Rates and Combination Rates Bulletin 
states:

{w{time} hile continuing the practice of assigning separate rates 
only to exporters, all separate rates that the Department will now 
assign in its NME Investigation will be specific to those producers 
that supplied the exporter during the period of investigation. Note, 
however, that one rate is calculated for the exporter and all of the 
producers which supplied subject merchandise to it during the period 
of investigation. This practice applies both to mandatory 
respondents receiving an individually calculated separate rate as 
well as the pool of non-investigated firms receiving the weighted-
average of the individually calculated rates. This practice is 
referred to as the application of ``combination rates'' because such 
rates apply to specific combinations of exporters and one or more 
producers. The cash-deposit rate assigned to an exporter will apply 
only to merchandise both exported by the firm in question and 
produced by a firm that supplied the exporter during the period of 
investigation.\72\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \72\ See Policy Bulletin 05.1 at 6 (emphasis added).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Distribution of Copies of the Petitions

    In accordance with section 732(b)(3)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 
351.202(f), copies of the public version of the Petitions have been 
provided to the governments of Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, the 
UAE, and Vietnam via

[[Page 73714]]

ACCESS. To the extent practicable, we will attempt to provide a copy of 
the public version of the Petitions to each exporter named in the 
Petitions, as provided under 19 CFR 351.203(c)(2).

ITC Notification

    We will notify the ITC of our initiation, as required by section 
732(d) of the Act.

Preliminary Determinations by the ITC

    The ITC will preliminarily determine, within 45 days after the date 
on which the Petitions were filed, whether there is a reasonable 
indication that imports of circular welded pipe from Oman, Pakistan, 
the Philippines, the UAE, and/or Vietnam are materially injuring or 
threatening material injury to a U.S. industry.\73\ A negative ITC 
determination for any country will result in the investigation being 
terminated with respect to that country; \74\ otherwise, these 
investigations will proceed according to statutory and regulatory time 
limits.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \73\ See section 733(a) of the Act.
    \74\ Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Submission of Factual Information

    Factual information is defined in 19 CFR 351.102(b)(21) as: (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). Any party, when submitting 
factual information, must specify under which subsection of 19 CFR 
351.102(b)(21) the information is being submitted \75\ 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.\76\ Time limits for 
the submission of factual information are addressed in 19 CFR 351.301, 
which provides specific time limits based on the type of factual 
information being submitted. Please review the regulations prior to 
submitting factual information in these investigations.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \75\ See 19 CFR 351.301(b).
    \76\ See 19 CFR 351.301(b)(2).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Extensions of Time Limits

    Parties may request an extension of time limits before the 
expiration of a time limit established under 19 CFR 351, or as 
otherwise specified by the Secretary. In general, an extension request 
will be considered untimely if it is filed after the expiration of the 
time limit established under 19 CFR 351. For submissions that are due 
from multiple parties simultaneously, an extension request will be 
considered untimely if it is filed after 10:00 a.m. ET on the due date. 
Under certain circumstances, we may elect to specify a different time 
limit by which extension requests will be considered untimely for 
submissions which are due from multiple parties simultaneously. In such 
a case, we will inform parties in the letter or memorandum setting 
forth the deadline (including a specified time) by which extension 
requests must be filed to be considered timely. An extension request 
must be made in a separate, stand-alone submission; under limited 
circumstances we will grant untimely-filed requests for the extension 
of time limits. Review Extension of Time Limits; Final Rule, 78 FR 
57790 (September 20, 2013), available at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2013-09-20/html/2013-22853.htm, prior to submitting factual 
information in these investigations.

Certification Requirements

    Any party submitting factual information in an AD or CVD proceeding 
must certify to the accuracy and completeness of that information.\77\ 
Parties are hereby reminded that revised certification requirements are 
in effect for company/government officials, as well as their 
representatives. Investigations initiated on the basis of petitions 
filed on or after August 16, 2013, and other 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.\78\ The Department intends to reject factual submissions if the 
submitting party does not comply with applicable revised certification 
requirements.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \77\ See section 782(b) of the Act.
    \78\ See Certification of Factual Information to Import 
Administration during Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Proceedings, 78 FR 42678 (July 17, 2013) (Final Rule); see also 
frequently asked questions regarding the Final Rule, available at 
http://enforcement.trade.gov/tlei/notices/factual_info_final_rule_FAQ_07172013.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

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 these investigations 
should ensure that they meet the requirements of these procedures 
(e.g., the filing of letters of appearance as discussed in 19 CFR 
351.103(d)).
    This notice is issued and published pursuant to section 777(i) of 
the Act.

    Dated: November 17, 2015.
Paul Piquado,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix I--Scope of the Investigations

    These investigations cover welded carbon-quality steel pipes and 
tube, of circular cross-section, with an outside diameter (O.D.) not 
more than nominal 16 inches (406.4 mm), regardless of wall 
thickness, surface finish (e.g., black, galvanized, or painted), end 
finish (plain end, beveled end, grooved, threaded, or threaded and 
coupled), or industry specification (e.g., American Society for 
Testing and Materials International (ASTM), proprietary, or other), 
generally known as standard pipe, fence pipe and tube, sprinkler 
pipe, and structural pipe (although subject product may also be 
referred to as mechanical tubing). Specifically, the term ``carbon 
quality'' includes products in which:

(a) iron predominates, by weight, over each of the other contained 
elements;
(b) the carbon content is 2 percent or less, by weight; and
(c) none of the elements listed below exceeds the quantity, by 
weight, as indicated:

(i) 1.80 percent of manganese;
(ii) 2.25 percent of silicon;
(iii) 1.00 percent of copper;
(iv) 0.50 percent of aluminum;
(v) 1.25 percent of chromium;
(vi) 0.30 percent of cobalt;
(vii) 0.40 percent of lead;
(viii) 1.25 percent of nickel;
(ix) 0.30 percent of tungsten;
(x) 0.15 percent of molybdenum;
(xi) 0.10 percent of niobium;
(xii) 0.41 percent of titanium;
(xiii) 0.15 percent of vanadium; or
(xiv) 0.15 percent of zirconium.

    Covered products are generally made to standard O.D. and wall 
thickness combinations. Pipe multi-stenciled to a standard and/or 
structural specification and to other specifications, such as 
American Petroleum Institute (API) API-5L, is also covered by the 
scope of these investigations when it meets the physical description 
set forth above. Covered products may also possess one or more of 
the following characteristics: Is 32 feet in length or less; is less 
than 2.0 inches (50mm) in nominal O.D.; has a galvanized and/or 
painted (e.g., polyester coated) surface finish; or has a threaded 
and/or coupled end finish.
    Standard pipe is ordinarily made to ASTM specifications A53, 
A135, and A795, but can also be made to other specifications. 
Structural pipe is made primarily to ASTM specifications A252 and 
A500. Standard and structural pipe may also be produced to 
proprietary specifications rather than to industry specifications.

[[Page 73715]]

    Sprinkler pipe is designed for sprinkler fire suppression 
systems and may be made to industry specifications such as ASTM A53 
or to proprietary specifications.
    Fence tubing is included in the scope regardless of 
certification to a specification listed in the exclusions below, and 
can also be made to the ASTM A513 specification. Products that meet 
the physical description set forth above but are made to the 
following nominal outside diameter and wall thickness combinations, 
which are recognized by the industry as typical for fence tubing, 
are included despite being certified to ASTM mechanical tubing 
specifications:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                    Wall
                                                thickness in
           O.D. in inches  (nominal)               inches        Gage
                                                  (nominal)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.315.........................................        0.035          20
1.315.........................................        0.047          18
1.315.........................................        0.055          17
1.315.........................................        0.065          16
1.315.........................................        0.072          15
1.315.........................................        0.083          14
1.315.........................................        0.095          13
1.660.........................................        0.055          17
1.660.........................................        0.065          16
1.660.........................................        0.083          14
1.660.........................................        0.095          13
1.660.........................................        0.109          12
1.900.........................................        0.047          18
1.900.........................................        0.055          17
1.900.........................................        0.065          16
1.900.........................................        0.072          15
1.900.........................................        0.095          13
1.900.........................................        0.109          12
2.375.........................................        0.047          18
2.375.........................................        0.055          17
2.375.........................................        0.065          16
2.375.........................................        0.072          15
2.375.........................................        0.095          13
2.375.........................................        0.109          12
2.375.........................................        0.120          11
2.875.........................................        0.109          12
2.875.........................................        0.165           8
3.500.........................................        0.109          12
3.500.........................................        0.165           8
4.000.........................................        0.148           9
4.000.........................................        0.165           8
4.500.........................................        0.203           7
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The scope of these investigations does not include:

(a) Pipe suitable for use in boilers, superheaters, heat exchangers, 
refining furnaces and feedwater heaters, whether or not cold drawn, 
which are defined by standards such as ASTM A178 or ASTM A192;
(b) finished electrical conduit, i.e., Electrical Rigid Steel 
Conduit (aka Electrical Rigid Metal Conduit and Electrical Rigid 
Metal Steel Conduit), Finished Electrical Metallic Tubing, and 
Electrical Intermediate Metal Conduit, which are defined by 
specifications such as American National Standard (ANSI) C80.1-2005, 
ANSI C80.3-2005, or ANSI C80.6-2005, and Underwriters Laboratories 
Inc. (UL) UL-6, UL-797, or UL-1242;
(c) finished scaffolding, i.e., component parts of final, finished 
scaffolding that enter the United States unassembled as a ``kit.'' A 
kit is understood to mean a packaged combination of component parts 
that contains, at the time of importation, all of the necessary 
component parts to fully assemble final, finished scaffolding;
(d) tube and pipe hollows for redrawing;
(e) oil country tubular goods produced to API specifications;
(f) line pipe produced to only API specifications, such as API 5L, 
and not multi-stenciled; and
(g) mechanical tubing, whether or not cold-drawn, other than what is 
included in the above paragraphs.

    The products subject to these investigations are currently 
classifiable in Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States 
(HTSUS) statistical reporting numbers 7306.19.1010, 7306.19.1050, 
7306.19.5110, 7306.19.5150, 7306.30.1000, 7306.30.5015, 
7306.30.5020, 7306.30.5025, 7306.30.5032, 7306.50.5030, 
7306.30.5040, 7306.30.5055, 7306.30.5085, 7306.30.5090, 
7306.50.1000, 7306.50.5050, and 7306.50.5070. However, the product 
description, and not the HTSUS classification, is dispositive of 
whether the merchandise imported into the United States falls within 
the scope.
[FR Doc. 2015-29988 Filed 11-24-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P