[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 137 (Wednesday, July 19, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33048-33049]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-14954]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-351-849]


Emulsion Styrene-Butadiene Rubber From Brazil: Final Affirmative 
Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Final Negative 
Determination of Critical Circumstances

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

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Department) determines that 
emulsion styrene-butadiene rubber (ESB rubber) from Brazil is being, or 
is likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value 
(LTFV). The period of investigation (POI) is July 1, 2015, through June 
30, 2016.

DATES: July 19, 2017.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Drew Jackson, AD/CVD Operations, 
Office IV, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW., Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-4406.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    On February 24, 2017, the Department published the Preliminary 
Determination of this antidumping duty LTFV investigation, as provided 
by section 735 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (Act), in which 
the Department found that ESB rubber from Brazil sold at LTFV.\1\ A 
summary of the events that have occurred since the Department published 
the Preliminary Determination, as well as a full discussion of the 
issues raised by interested parties for this final determination, may 
be found in the Issues and Decision Memorandum.\2\ The Issues and 
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 Issues and Decision 
Memorandum can be accessed directly at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/.
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    \1\ See Emulsion Styrene-Butadiene Rubber from Brazil: 
Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair 
Value, Negative Determination of Critical Circumstances, 
Postponement of Final Determination, and Extension of Provisional 
Measures, 82 FR 11538 (February 24, 2017), and accompanying 
Preliminary Decision Memorandum (collectively, Preliminary 
Determination).
    \2\ See Memorandum, ``Issues and Decision Memorandum for the 
Final Determination in the Less Than Fair Value Investigation of 
Emulsion Styrene-Butadiene Rubber From Brazil,'' dated concurrently 
with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Issues and Decision 
Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation

    The product covered by this investigation is ESB rubber from 
Brazil. For a complete description of the scope of this investigation, 
see Appendix I.

Scope Comments

    No interested party commented on the scope of the investigation as 
it appeared in the Initiation Notice.\3\ Therefore, we did not modify 
the scope language of this investigation remains unchanged for this 
final determination.
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    \3\ See Emulsion Styrene-Butadiene Rubber from Brazil, the 
Republic of Korea, Mexico and Poland: Initiation of Less Than Fair 
Value Investigations, 81 FR 55438 (August 19, 2016) (Initiation 
Notice).
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Verification

    As provided in section 782(i) of the Act, in February and March 
2017, the Department conducted verification of the information reported 
by the mandatory respondent ARLANXEO Brasil S.A. (ARLANXEO Brasil) and 
its U.S. affiliate, ARLANXEO U.S.A. LLC, for use in the Department's 
final determination.\4\ The Department used standard verification 
procedures, including an examination of relevant accounting and 
production records and original source documents provided by the 
respondent.
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    \4\ See Memorandum, ``Verification of the Constructed Export 
Price Sales Questionnaire Responses of ARLANXEO U.S.A. LLC,'' dated 
April 13, 2017; Memorandum, ``Verification of the Home Market and 
Constructed Export Price Sales Questionnaire Responses of ARLANXEO 
Brasil S.A.,'' dated April 21, 2017; and Memorandum, ``Verification 
of the Cost Response of ARLANXEO Brasil S.A. in the Antidumping Duty 
Investigation of Certain Emulsion Styrene Butadiene Rubber from 
Brazil,'' dated May 15, 2017.
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Analysis of Comments Received

    All issues raised in the case and rebuttal briefs that were 
submitted by parties in this investigation are addressed in the Issues 
and Decision Memorandum. A list of these issues is attached to this 
notice as Appendix II. Based on our analysis of the comments received 
and our findings at verifications, we made certain changes to the 
margin calculation for ARLANXEO Brasil, and also the all-others rate.

All-Others Rate

    Section 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act provides that in the final 
determination the Department shall determine an estimated all-others 
rate for all exporters and producers not individually examined. This 
rate shall be an amount equal to the weighted average of the estimated 
weighted-average dumping margins established for exporters and 
producers individually investigated, excluding any zero and de minimis 
margins, and any margins determined entirely under section 776 of the 
Act. For the final determination, the Department calculated an 
individual estimated weighted-average dumping margin for ARLANXEO 
Brasil, the only individually examined exporter/producer in this 
investigation. Because the only individually calculated dumping margin 
is not zero, de minimis, or based entirely on facts otherwise 
available, the estimated weighted-average dumping margin calculated for 
ARLANXEO Brasil is the margin assigned to all-other producers and 
exporters, pursuant to section 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act.

Final Determination

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

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Estimated
                                                               weighted-
                                                                average
                      Exporter/producer                         dumping
                                                                margins
                                                               (percent)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ARLANXEO Brasil S.A.........................................       19.61
All-Others..................................................       19.61
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Final Negative Determination of Critical Circumstances

    On January 25, 2017, the petitioners \5\ filed a timely critical 
circumstances allegation, pursuant to section 733(e)(1) of the Act and 
19 CFR 351.206(c)(1), alleging that critical circumstances exist with 
respect to imports of ESB rubber from Brazil.\6\ On February 24, 2017, 
the

[[Page 33049]]

Department preliminarily determined that critical circumstances did not 
exist for the mandatory respondent ARLANXEO Brasil or the exporters and 
producers not individually investigated (i.e., ``all-others''). In this 
final, the Department continues to find that, in accordance with 
735(a)(3) of the Act, critical circumstances do not exist for ARLANXEO 
Brasil or the non-individually examined companies receiving the all-
others rate in this investigation. A discussion of the determination 
can be found in the ``Negative Determination of Critical 
Circumstances'' section of the Issues and Decision Memorandum.
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    \5\ Lion Elastomers LLC and East West Copolymers (collectively, 
the petitioners).
    \6\ See Letter to the Honorable Penny Pritzker, Secretary of 
Commerce, from the Petitioners, concerning, ``Emulsion Styrene-
Butadiene Rubber (ESBR) from Brazil and South Korea: Critical 
Circumstances Allegation,'' dated January 25, 2017.
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Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation

    In accordance with section 735(c)(1)(B) of the Act, the Department 
will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to continue to 
suspend liquidation of all appropriate entries of ESB rubber from 
Brazil as described in Appendix I of this notice, which were entered, 
or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after February 24, 
2017, the date of publication of the Preliminary Determination of this 
investigation in the Federal Register. Further, pursuant to section 
735(c)(1)(B) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(d), the Department will 
instruct CBP to require a cash deposit equal to the estimated weighted-
average dumping margin or the estimated all-others rate, as follows: 
(1) The cash deposit rate for the respondents listed above will be 
equal to the respondent-specific estimated weighted-average dumping 
margins determined in this final determination; (2) if the exporter is 
not a respondent identified above, but the producer is, then the cash 
deposit rate will be equal to the respondent-specific estimated 
weighted-average dumping margin established for that producer of the 
subject merchandise; and (3) the cash deposit rate for all other 
producers and exporters will be equal to the all-others estimated 
weighted-average dumping margin.

Disclosure

    The Department intends to disclose to interested parties its 
calculations and analysis performed in this final determination within 
five days of any public announcement or, if there is no public 
announcement, within five days of the date of publication of this 
notice in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).

International Trade Commission Notification

    In accordance with section 735(d) of the Act, the Department will 
notify the International Trade Commission (ITC) of its final 
affirmative determination. Because the final determination in this 
proceeding is affirmative, in accordance with section 735(b)(2) of the 
Act, the ITC will make its final determination as to whether the 
domestic industry in the United States is materially injured, or 
threatened with material injury, by reason of imports of ESB rubber 
from Brazil no later than 45 days after the Department's final 
determination. If the ITC determines that material injury or threat of 
material injury does not exist, the proceeding will be terminated and 
all securities posted will be refunded or canceled. If the ITC 
determines that such injury does exist, the Department will issue an 
antidumping duty order directing CBP to assess, upon further 
instruction by the Department, antidumping duties on appropriate 
imports of the subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from 
warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of the suspension of 
liquidation.

Notification to Regarding Administrative Protective Orders

    This notice serves as a reminder to parties subject to an 
administrative protective order (APO) of their responsibility 
concerning the disposition of proprietary information disclosed under 
APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305(a)(3). Timely notification of the 
return or destruction of APO materials, or conversion to judicial 
protective order, is hereby requested. Failure to comply with the 
regulations and the terms of an APO is a violation subject to sanction.
    This determination and this notice are issued and published 
pursuant to sections 735(d) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 
351.210(c).

    Dated: July 10, 2017.
Gary Taverman,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Operations, performing the non-exclusive functions and duties of the 
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix I

Scope of the Investigation

    For purposes of this investigation, the product covered is cold-
polymerized emulsion styrene-butadiene rubber (ESB rubber). The 
scope of the investigation includes, but is not limited to, ESB 
rubber in primary forms, bales, granules, crumbs, pellets, powders, 
plates, sheets, strip, etc. ESB rubber consists of non-pigmented 
rubbers and oil-extended non-pigmented rubbers, both of which 
contain at least one percent of organic acids from the emulsion 
polymerization process.
    ESB rubber is produced and sold in accordance with a generally 
accepted set of product specifications issued by the International 
Institute of Synthetic Rubber Producers (IISRP). The scope of the 
investigation covers grades of ESB rubber included in the IISRP 1500 
and 1700 series of synthetic rubbers. The 1500 grades are light in 
color and are often described as ``Clear'' or ``White Rubber.'' The 
1700 grades are oil-extended and thus darker in color, and are often 
called ``Brown Rubber.''
    Specifically excluded from the scope of this investigation are 
products which are manufactured by blending ESB rubber with other 
polymers, high styrene resin master batch, carbon black master batch 
(i.e., IISRP 1600 series and 1800 series) and latex (an intermediate 
product).
    The products subject to this investigation are currently 
classifiable under subheadings 4002.19.0015 and 4002.19.0019 of the 
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). ESB rubber 
is described by Chemical Abstract Services (CAS) Registry No. 9003-
55-8. This CAS number also refers to other types of styrene 
butadiene rubber. Although the HTSUS subheadings and CAS registry 
number are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the 
written description of the scope of this investigation is 
dispositive.

Appendix II

List of Topics Discussed in the Issues and Decision Memorandum

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope of the Investigation
IV. Scope Comments
V. Final Negative Determination of Critical Circumstances
VI. Margin Calculations
VII. Discussion of the Issues
    Comment 1: Level of Trade
    Comment 2: U.S. Indirect Selling Expenses
    Comment 3: Domestic Indirect Selling Expense Clerical Error
VIII. Recommendation

[FR Doc. 2017-14954 Filed 7-18-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P