[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 170 (Tuesday, September 5, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41931-41933]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-18641]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[C-475-837]


Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod From Italy: Preliminary 
Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination

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

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (the Department) preliminarily 
determines that countervailable subsidies are being provided to 
producers and exporters of carbon and alloy steel wire rod (wire rod) 
from Italy. The period of investigation is January 1, 2016, through 
December 31, 2016.

DATES: Applicable September 5, 2017.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Yasmin Bordas or John Corrigan, AD/CVD 
Operations, Office VI, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW., Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-3813 or (202) 482-7438, 
respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    This preliminary determination is made in accordance with section 
703(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). The Department 
published the notice of initiation of this investigation on April 26, 
2017.\1\ On June 5, 2017, the Department postponed the preliminary 
determination of this investigation and the revised deadline is now 
August 25, 2017.\2\ For a complete description of the events that 
followed the initiation of this investigation, see the Preliminary 
Decision Memorandum.\3\ A list of topics discussed 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 http://access.trade.gov, and 
is available to all parties in the Central Records Unit, Room B8024 of 
the main Department of Commerce building. In addition, a complete 
version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly 
at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/. The signed and electronic 
versions of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum are identical in 
content.
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    \1\ See Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod from Italy and Turkey: 
Initiation of Countervailing Duty Investigations, 82 FR 19213 (April 
26, 2017) (Initiation Notice).
    \2\ See Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod from Italy and the 
Republic of Turkey: Postponement of Preliminary Determinations of 
Countervailing Duty Investigations, 82 FR 25771 (June 5, 2017).
    \3\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary 
Affirmative Determination of the Countervailing Duty Investigation 
of Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod from Italy,'' dated concurrently 
with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation

    The product covered by this investigation is wire rod from Italy. 
For

[[Page 41932]]

a complete description of the scope of this investigation, see Appendix 
I.

Scope Comments

    In accordance with the preamble to the Department's regulations,\4\ 
the Initiation Notice set aside a period of time for parties to raise 
issues regarding product coverage, (i.e., scope).\5\ 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.\6\ The 
Department is not preliminarily modifying the scope language as it 
appeared in the Initiation Notice. See scope in Appendix I.
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    \4\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule, 
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997).
    \5\ See Initiation Notice, 82 FR at 19214.
    \6\ See Memorandum, ``Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod from 
Belarus, Italy, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, South 
Africa, Spain, the Republic of Turkey, Ukraine, the United Arab 
Emirates, and the United Kingdom: Scope Comments Decision Memorandum 
for the Preliminary Determinations,'' dated August 7, 2017 
(Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum).
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Methodology

    The Department is conducting this investigation in accordance with 
section 701 of the Act. For each of the subsidy programs found 
countervailable, the Department preliminarily determines that there is 
a subsidy, i.e., a financial contribution by an ``authority'' that 
gives rise to a benefit to the recipient, and that the subsidy is 
specific.\7\
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    \7\ See sections 771(5)(B) and (D) of the Act regarding 
financial contribution; section 771(5)(E) of the Act regarding 
benefit; and section 771(5A) of the Act regarding specificity.
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    The Department notes that, in making these findings, it relied, in 
part, on facts available and, because it finds that one or more 
respondents did not act to the best of their ability to respond to the 
Department's requests for information, it drew an adverse inference 
where appropriate in selecting from among the facts otherwise 
available.\8\ For further information, see ``Use of Facts Otherwise 
Available and Adverse Inferences'' in the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum.
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    \8\ See sections 776(a) and (b) of the Act.
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All-Others Rate

    Sections 703(d) and 705(c)(5)(A) of the Act provide that in the 
preliminary determination, the Department shall determine an estimated 
all-others rate for companies not individually examined. This rate 
shall be an amount equal to the weighted average of the estimated 
subsidy rates established for those companies individually examined, 
excluding any zero and de minimis rates and any rates based entirely 
under section 776 of the Act. In this investigation, the Department 
preliminarily assigned a rate based entirely on facts available to 
Ferriera Valsider S.p.A. (Ferriera Valsider). Therefore, the only rate 
that is not zero, de minimis, or based entirely on facts otherwise 
available, is the rate calculated for Ferriere Nord S.p.A. (Ferriere 
Nord). Consequently, the rate calculated for Ferriere Nord is also 
assigned as the rate for all-other producers and exporters.

Preliminary Determination

    The Department preliminarily determines that the following 
estimated countervailable subsidy rates exist:
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    \9\ As discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, the 
Department has found the following companies to be cross-owned with 
Ferriere Nord: FIN FER S.p.A.; Acciaierie di Verona S.p.A.; and SIAT 
S.p.A.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                Subsidy
                           Company                               rate
                                                               (percent)
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Ferriere Nord S.p.A.\9\.....................................        1.70
Ferriera Valsider S.p.A.....................................       44.18
All-Others..................................................        1.70
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Suspension of Liquidation

    In accordance with section 703(d)(1)(B) and (d)(2) of the Act, the 
Department will direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to 
suspend liquidation of entries of subject merchandise 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. Further, pursuant to 19 CFR 351.205(d), 
the Department will instruct CBP to require a cash deposit equal to the 
rates indicated above.

Disclosure

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

Verification

    As provided in section 782(i)(1) of the Act, the Department intends 
to verify the information relied upon in making its final 
determination.

Public Comment

    Case briefs or other written comments may be submitted to the 
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance no later than seven 
days after the date on which the last verification report is issued in 
this investigation. Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in case 
briefs, may be submitted no later than five days after the deadline 
date for case briefs.\10\ Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2), 
parties who submit case briefs or rebuttal briefs in this investigation 
are encouraged to submit with each argument: (1) A statement of the 
issue; (2) a brief summary of the argument; and (3) a table of 
authorities.
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    \10\ See 19 CFR 351.309; see also 19 CFR 351.303 (for general 
filing requirements).
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    Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), interested parties who wish to 
request a hearing, limited to issues raised in the case and rebuttal 
briefs, must submit a written request to the Assistant Secretary for 
Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. Department of Commerce, within 30 days 
after the date of publication of this notice. Requests should contain 
the party's name, address, and telephone number, the number of 
participants, whether any participant is a foreign national, and a list 
of the issues to be discussed. If a request for a hearing is made, the 
Department intends to hold the hearing at the U.S. Department of 
Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230, at a time 
and date to be determined. Parties should confirm by telephone the 
date, time, and location of the hearing two days before the scheduled 
date.

International Trade Commission Notification

    In accordance with section 703(f) of the Act, the Department will 
notify the International Trade Commission (ITC) of its determination. 
If the 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 the final determination.

Notification to Interested Parties

    This determination is issued and published pursuant to sections 
703(f) and 777(i) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(c).


[[Page 41933]]


    Dated: August 25, 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

    The merchandise covered by this investigation are certain hot-
rolled products of carbon steel and alloy steel, in coils, of 
approximately round cross section, less than 19.00 mm in actual 
solid cross-sectional diameter. Specifically excluded are steel 
products possessing the above-noted physical characteristics and 
meeting the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) 
definitions for (a) stainless steel; (b) tool steel; (c) high-nickel 
steel; (d) ball bearing steel; or (e) concrete reinforcing bars and 
rods. Also excluded are free cutting steel (also known as free 
machining steel) products (i.e., products that contain by weight one 
more of the following elements: 0.1 percent or more of lead, 0.05 
percent or more of bismuth, 0.08 percent or more of sulfur, more 
than 0.04 percent of phosphorous, more than 0.05 percent of 
selenium, or more than 0.01 percent of tellurium). All products 
meeting the physical description of subject merchandise that are not 
specifically excluded are included in this scope.
    The products under investigation are currently classifiable 
under subheadings 7213.91.3011, 7213.91.3015, 7213.91.3020, 
7213.91.3093, 7213.91.4500, 7213.91.6000, 7213.99.0030, 
7227.20.0030, 7227.20.0080, 7227.90.6010, 7227.90.6020, 
7227.90.6030, and 7227.90.6035 of the HTSUS. Products entered under 
subheadings 7213.99.0090 and 7227.90.6090 of the HTSUS also may be 
included in this scope if they meet the physical description of 
subject merchandise above. Although the HTSUS subheadings are 
provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written 
description of the scope of this proceeding is dispositive.

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

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope Comments
IV. Scope of the Investigation
V. Respondent Selection
VI. Injury Test
VII. Subsidies Valuation
VIII. Use of Facts Otherwise Available and Adverse Inferences
IX. Analysis of Programs
X. ITC Notification
XI. Disclosure and Public Comment
XII. Verification
XIII. Conclusion

[FR Doc. 2017-18641 Filed 9-1-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P