[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 1 (Monday, January 4, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 75-78]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-32763]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-026]


Certain Corrosion-Resistant Steel Products From the People's 
Republic of China: Affirmative Preliminary Determination of Sales at 
Less Than Fair Value and Postponement of Final Determination

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (the Department) preliminarily 
determines that certain corrosion-resistant steel products (corrosion-
resistant steel) from the People's Republic of China (PRC) are being, 
or are likely to be, sold in 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 October 1, 
2014, through March 31, 2015. The estimated weighted-average dumping 
margins are shown in the ``Preliminary Determination'' section of this 
notice. Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary 
determination.

DATES: Effective Date: January 4, 2016.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nancy Decker or Andrew Huston, 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-
0196 or (202) 482-4261, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Department published the notice of initiation of this 
investigation on June 30, 2015.\1\ For a complete description of the 
events that followed the initiation of this investigation, see the 
Preliminary Decision Memorandum that is dated concurrently with this 
determination and hereby adopted by this notice.\2\ A list of topics 
included in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is included as Appendix 
II 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 https://access.trade.gov, and 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 found at 
http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/. The signed Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum and the electronic version of the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum are identical in content.
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    \1\ See Certain Corrosion-Resistant Steel Products From Italy, 
India, the People's Republic of China, the Republic of Korea, and 
Taiwan: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations, 80 FR 
37228 (June 30, 2015) (Initiation Notice).
    \2\ See Memorandum from Gary Taverman, Associate Deputy 
Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Operations, to Paul Piquado, Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and 
Compliance ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary Determination 
in the Antidumping Duty Investigation of Certain Corrosion-Resistant 
Steel Products from the People's Republic of China'' (Preliminary 
Decision Memorandum), dated concurrently with and hereby adopted by 
this notice.
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Scope of the Investigation

    The product covered by this investigation is corrosion-resistant 
steel from the PRC. For a full description of the scope of this 
investigation, see the ``Scope of the Investigation,'' in Appendix I.

Scope Comments

    In accordance with the preamble to the Department's regulations,\3\ 
the Initiation Notice set aside a period of time for parties to raise 
issues regarding product coverage (i.e., scope).\4\ Certain interested 
parties commented on the scope of the investigation as it appeared in 
the Initiation Notice, as well as additional language proposed by the 
Department. For a summary of the product coverage comments and rebuttal 
responses submitted to the record for this preliminary determination, 
and accompanying discussion and analysis of all comments timely 
received, see the Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum.\5\ The 
Department is preliminarily modifying the scope language as it appeared 
in the Initiation Notice to clarify that corrosion-resistant steel 
which is further processed in a third country is covered by the scope 
of the investigation. See ``Scope of the Investigation,'' in Appendix 
I, which includes the additional clarifying language.
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    \3\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, 62 FR 27296, 
27323 (May 19, 1997).
    \4\ See Initiation Notice, 80 FR at 37229.
    \5\ See Memorandum to Gary Taverman, Associate Deputy Assistant 
Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Operations, 
``Certain Corrosion-Resistant Steel Products From the People's 
Republic of China, India, Italy, the Republic of Korea, and Taiwan: 
Scope Comments Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary 
Determinations,'' dated December 21, 2015.
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Methodology

    The Department is conducting this investigation in accordance with 
section 731 of the Act. Export prices have been calculated in 
accordance with section 772(a) of the Act. Because the PRC is a non-
market economy within the meaning of section 771(18) of the Act, we 
calculated normal value (NV) in accordance with section 773(c) of the 
Act. For a full description of the methodology underlying our 
preliminary conclusions, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

Combination Rates

    In the Initiation Notice, the Department stated that it would 
calculate combination rates for the respondents that are eligible for a 
separate rate in this investigation. Policy Bulletin 05.1 describes 
this practice.\6\
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    \6\ See Enforcement and Compliance's Policy Bulletin No. 05.1, 
regarding, ``Separate-Rates Practice and Application of Combination 
Rates in Antidumping Investigations involving Non-Market Economy 
Countries,'' (April 5, 2005) (Policy Bulletin 05.1), available on 
the Department's Web site at http://enforcement.trade.gov/policy/bull05-1.pdf.
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Preliminary Determination

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

[[Page 76]]



------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Weighted-
                                                                average
             Exporter                       Producer            dumping
                                                                margin
                                                               (percent)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yieh Phui (China) Technomaterial   Yieh Phui (China)              255.80
 Co., Ltd.                          Technomaterial Co., Ltd.
Jiangyin Zongcheng Steel Co. Ltd.  Jiangyin Zongcheng Steel       255.80
                                    Co. Ltd.
Union Steel China................  Union Steel China........      255.80
PRC-Wide Entity..................  .........................      255.80
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    As detailed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, Baoshan Iron & 
Steel Co., Ltd. (Baoshan) and Hebei Iron & Steel Co., Ltd. (Tangshan 
Branch) (Tangshan), mandatory respondents in this investigation, did 
not respond to our questionnaire and, thus, did demonstrate that they 
were entitled to separate rates. Accordingly, we consider Baoshan and 
Tangshan to be part of the PRC-Wide Entity. Furthermore, because we did 
not receive quantity and value questionnaire responses or separate rate 
applications from numerous companies, the PRC-wide entity also includes 
these non-responsive companies.\7\
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    \7\ See Memorandum to the File, ``Quantity and Value 
Questionnaire Recipients'' (July 16, 2015).
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Suspension of Liquidation

    In accordance with section 733(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 section entered, or withdrawn from 
warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of this 
notice in the Federal Register.
    Section 733(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 November 5, 2015, we 
preliminarily found that critical circumstances exist for imports of 
corrosion-resistant steel from the PRC produced or exported by the PRC-
wide entity (which, as noted above, includes Tangshan and Baoshan).\8\ 
Accordingly, for the PRC-wide entity, in accordance with section 
733(e)(2)(A) of the Act, the suspension of liquidation 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.
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    \8\ 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 
Determinations of Critical Circumstances, 80 FR 68504, 68507 
(November 5, 2015).
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    Pursuant to section 733(d)(1)(B) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(d), 
the Department will instruct CBP to require a cash deposit \9\ equal to 
the weighted-average amount by which the NV exceeds U.S. price as 
follows: (1) The cash deposit rate for the exporter/producer 
combination listed in the table above will be the rate identified for 
that combination in the table; (2) for all combinations of PRC 
exporters/producers of merchandise under consideration that have not 
received their own separate rate above, the cash-deposit rate will be 
the cash deposit rate established for the PRC-wide entity, 255.80 
percent; and (3) for all non-PRC exporters of the merchandise under 
consideration which have not received their own separate rate above, 
the cash-deposit rate will be the cash deposit rate applicable to the 
PRC exporter/producer combination that supplied that non-PRC exporter. 
These suspension of liquidation instructions will remain in effect 
until further notice.
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    \9\ See Modification of Regulations Regarding the Practice of 
Accepting Bonds During the Provisional Measures Period in 
Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Investigations, 76 FR 61042 
(October 3, 2011).
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    We normally adjust antidumping duty cash deposit rates by the 
amount of export subsidies, where appropriate. In the companion CVD 
investigation, we preliminarily found that Yieh Phui did not receive 
export subsidies. The rate for all-others companies in the CVD case was 
based on Yieh Phui's rate, and thus the all-others companies did not 
receive an export subsidy rate.\10\ Therefore, no offset to Yieh Phui's 
or the Separate Rate entities' (these companies were considered ``all-
others'' companies in the companion CVD case) cash deposit rates for 
export subsidies is necessary. Finally, we are not adjusting the cash 
deposit rate applicable to the PRC-wide entity for export 
subsidies.\11\
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    \10\ See Countervailing Duty Investigation of Certain Corrosion-
Resistant Steel Products From the People's Republic of China: 
Preliminary Affirmative Determination, 80 FR 68843 (November 6, 
2015) and accompanying Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
    \11\ Id.
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    Pursuant to section 777A(f) of the Act, we normally adjust 
preliminary cash deposit rates for estimated domestic subsidy pass-
through, where appropriate. However, in this case we are not granting a 
domestic subsidy pass-through adjustment. See Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum.

Disclosure and Public Comment

    We will disclose the calculations performed to interested parties 
in this proceeding within five days of the date of announcement of this 
preliminary determination in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b). 
Interested parties may submit case briefs, rebuttal briefs, and hearing 
requests.\12\ For a schedule of the deadlines for filing case briefs, 
rebuttal briefs, and hearing requests, see the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum at Section IX.
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    \12\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)-(d), 19 CFR 351.310(c).
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Postponement of Final Determination and Extension of Provisional 
Measures

    Section 735(a)(2) of the Act provides that a final determination 
may be postponed until not later than 135 days after the date of the 
publication of the preliminary determination if, in the event of an 
affirmative preliminary determination, a request for such postponement 
is made by exporters who account for a significant proportion of 
exports of the subject merchandise, or in the event of a negative 
preliminary determination, a request for such postponement is made by 
Petitioners. 19 CFR 351.210(e)(2) requires that requests by respondents 
for postponement of a final antidumping determination be accompanied by 
a request for extension of provisional measures from a four-month 
period to a period not more than six months in duration.
    On December 16, 2015, pursuant to 19 CFR 351.210(b) and (e), Yieh 
Phui (China) Technomaterial Co., Ltd. requested that, contingent upon 
an affirmative preliminary determination of sales at LTFV, the 
Department postpone the final determination and that

[[Page 77]]

provisional measures be extended to a period not to exceed six 
months.\13\
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    \13\ See Letter to the Secretary of Commerce from Yieh Phui 
``Corrosion-Resistant Steel Products from China; Request to Extend 
Final Determination'' (December 16, 2015).
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    In accordance with section 735(a)(2)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 
351.210(b)(2)(ii), because (1) our preliminary determination is 
affirmative; (2) the requesting exporters account for a significant 
proportion of exports of the subject merchandise; and (3) no compelling 
reasons for denial exist, we are postponing the final determination and 
extending the provisional measures from a four-month period to a period 
not greater than six months. Accordingly, we will make our final 
determination no later than 135 days after the date of publication of 
this preliminary determination, pursuant to section 735(a)(2) of the 
Act.\14\
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    \14\ See also 19 CFR 351.210(e).
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International Trade Commission (ITC) Notification

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

     Dated: December 21, 2015.
Paul Piquado,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix I--Scope of the Investigation

    The products covered by the scope 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 metal 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 4.75 mm or more 
than 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 for above, and
    (2) where the width and thickness vary for a specific period 
(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 in 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; (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
 1.25 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 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.
    Subject merchandise also includes corrosion-resistant steel that 
has been further processed in a third country, including but not 
limited to annealing, tempering painting, varnishing, trimming, 
cutting, punching and/or slitting or any other processing that would 
not otherwise remove the merchandise from the scope of the 
investigation if performed in the country of manufacture of the in-
scope corrosion resistant steel.
    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 
measure at least twice the thickness; and
     Certain clad stainless flat-rolled products, which are 
three-layered corrosion-resistant steel 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, 7215.20.1500, 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.

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

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Period of Investigation
IV. Preliminary Determination of Critical Circumstances
V. Scope of the Investigation
VI. Discussion of the Methodology
    a. Non-Market Economy Country
    b. Surrogate Country and Surrogate Values Comments
    c. Separate Rates
    d. The PRC-Wide Entity
    e. Application of Facts Available and Adverse Inferences
    f. Date of Sale
    g. Comparisons to Fair Value
VII. Currency Conversion
VIII. Adjustment under Section 777A(F) of the Act
IX. Disclosure and Public Comment
X. Verification

[[Page 78]]

XI. Conclusion

[FR Doc. 2015-32763 Filed 12-31-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P