[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 197 (Thursday, October 11, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51436-51439]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-22126]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-552-823]


Laminated Woven Sacks From the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: 
Preliminary Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value

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

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines 
that laminated woven sacks (LWS) from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam 
(Vietnam) are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at 
less than fair value (LTFV) for the period of investigation (POI) July 
1, 2017, through December 31, 2017. Interested parties are invited to 
comment on this preliminary determination.

DATES: Applicable: October 11, 2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Drew Jackson or Celeste Chen, 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 or (202) 482-0890, 
respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    This preliminary determination is made in accordance with section 
733(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Commerce 
published the notice of initiation of this investigation

[[Page 51437]]

on April 3, 2018.\1\ On July 31, 2018, Commerce postponed the 
preliminary determination of this investigation and the revised 
deadline is now October 3, 2018.\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 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 accessed directly at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/. The signed and the electronic versions of 
the Preliminary Decision Memorandum are identical in content.
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    \1\ See Laminated Woven Sacks from the Socialist Republic of 
Vietnam: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation, 83 FR 
14257 (April 3, 2018) (Initiation Notice).
    \2\ See Laminated Woven Sacks from the Socialist Republic of 
Vietnam: Postponement of Preliminary Determination in the Less-Than-
Fair-Value Investigation, 83 FR 36876 (July 31, 2018).
    \3\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary 
Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation of Laminated 
Woven Sacks from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,'' dated 
concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary 
Decision Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation

    The products covered by this investigation are LWS from Vietnam. 
For a complete description of the scope of this investigation, see 
Appendix I.

Scope Comments

    In accordance with the preamble to Commerce's regulations,\4\ the 
Initiation Notice set aside a period of time for parties to raise 
issues regarding product coverage (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 
Commerce. For a summary of the product coverage comments and rebuttal 
responses submitted to the record for this investigation, and 
accompanying discussion and analysis of all comments timely received, 
see the Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum.\6\ Commerce is 
preliminarily modifying the scope language as it appeared in the 
Initiation Notice. See the revised scope in Appendix I to this notice.
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    \4\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule, 
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997).
    \5\ See Initiation Notice.
    \6\ See Memorandum, ``Laminated Woven Sacks from the Socialist 
Republic of Vietnam: Scope Comments Decision Memorandum for the 
Preliminary Determination'' (Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum), 
dated concurrently with this preliminary determination.
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Methodology

    Commerce is conducting this investigation in accordance with 
section 731 of the Act. Commerce has calculated export prices in 
accordance with section 772(a) of the Act. Because Vietnam is a non-
market economy country, within the meaning of section 771(18) of the 
Act, Commerce has calculated normal value (NV) in accordance with 
section 773(c) of the Act. Furthermore, Commerce preliminarily has 
denied a separate rate to mandatory respondent Xinsheng Plastic 
Industry Co., Ltd., which failed to respondent to certain supplemental 
questionnaires. For a full description of the methodology underlying 
Commerce's preliminary determination, see the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum.

Combination Rates

    In the Initiation Notice,\7\ Commerce stated that it would 
calculate producer/exporter combination rates for the respondents that 
are eligible for a separate rate in this investigation. Policy Bulletin 
05.1 describes this practice.\8\
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    \7\ See Initiation Notice.
    \8\ 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 
Commerce's website at http://enforcement.trade.gov/policy/bull05-1.pdf.
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Preliminary Determination

    Commerce preliminarily determines that the following estimated 
weighted-average dumping margins exist:

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                                                                                     Estimated     Cash deposit
                                                                                     weighted-    rate (adjusted
                  Exporter                                 Producer                   average       for subsidy
                                                                                  dumping margin     offsets)
                                                                                     (percent)       (percent)
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Duong Vinh Hoa Packaging Company Limited...  Duong Vinh Hoa Packaging Company             161.16          158.43
                                              Limited.
C.P. Packaging (Vietnam) Industry Co., Ltd.  C.P. Packaging (Vietnam) Industry            161.16          156.19
                                              Co., Ltd.
Tan Dai Hung d.b.a. Tan Dai Hung Joint       Tan Dai Hung d.b.a. Tan Dai Hung             161.16          156.19
 Stock Co. and Tan Dai Hung Plastic Joint     Joint Stock Co. and Tan Dai Hung
 Stock Company.                               Plastic Joint Stock Company.
TKMB Joint Stock Company...................  TKMB Joint Stock Company...........          161.16          156.19
Trung Dong Corporation.....................  Trung Dong Corporation.............          161.16          156.19
Vietnam-wide entity \9\....................  ...................................          292.61          289.88
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Suspension of Liquidation

    In accordance with section 733(d)(2) of the Act, Commerce will 
direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to suspend liquidation 
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, 
as discussed below. Further, pursuant to section 733(d)(1)(B) of the 
Act and 19 CFR 351.205(d), Commerce will instruct CBP to require a cash 
deposit equal to the weighted average amount by which normal value 
exceeds U.S. price, as indicated in the table above as follows: (1) For 
the producer/exporter combinations listed in the table above, the cash 
deposit rate is equal to the estimated weighted-average dumping margin 
listed for that combination in the table; (2) for all combinations of 
Vietnam producers/exporters of merchandise under consideration that 
have not established eligibility for their own separate rates, the cash 
deposit rate will be equal to the estimated weighted-average dumping 
margin established for the Vietnam-wide entity; and (3) for all third-
county exporters of merchandise under consideration not listed in the 
table

[[Page 51438]]

above, the cash deposit rate is the cash deposit rate applicable to the 
Vietnam producer/exporter combination (or the Vietnam-wide entity) that 
supplied that third-country exporter.
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    \9\ The Vietnam-wide entity includes Xinsheng Plastic Industry 
Co., Ltd.
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    To determine the cash deposit rate, Commerce normally adjusts the 
estimated weighted-average dumping margin by the amount of domestic 
subsidy pass-through and export subsidies determined in a companion CVD 
proceeding when CVD provisional measures are in effect. Accordingly, 
where Commerce has made a preliminary affirmative determination for 
domestic subsidy pass-through or export subsidies, Commerce has offset 
the calculated estimated weighted-average dumping margin by the 
appropriate rate(s). Any such adjusted rates may be found in the 
Preliminary Determination Section's table of estimated weighted-average 
dumping margins above.
    Should provisional measures in the companion CVD investigation 
expire prior to the expiration of provisional measures in this LTFV 
investigation, Commerce will direct CBP to begin collecting cash 
deposits at a rate equal to the estimated weighted-average dumping 
margins calculated in this preliminary determination unadjusted for the 
passed-through domestic subsidies or for export subsidies at the time 
the CVD provisional measures expire.
    These suspension of liquidation instructions will remain in effect 
until further notice.

Disclosure

    Commerce intends to disclose to interested parties the calculations 
performed in connection with this preliminary determination within five 
days of its 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).

Verification

    As provided in section 782(i)(1) of the Act, Commerce intends to 
verify 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 final verification report is 
issued in this investigation, unless the Secretary alters the time 
limit. 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, 
Commerce 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 733(f) of the Act, Commerce will notify 
the International Trade Commission (ITC) of its preliminary 
determination of sales at LTFV. 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 whether imports of the subject merchandise are materially 
injuring, or threaten material injury to, the U.S. industry.

Notification to Interested Parties

    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: October 3, 2018.
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 is laminated woven 
sacks. Laminated woven sacks are bags consisting of one or more 
plies of fabric consisting of woven polypropylene strip and/or woven 
polyethylene strip, regardless of the width of the strip; with or 
without an extrusion coating of polypropylene and/or polyethylene on 
one or both sides of the fabric; laminated by any method either to 
an exterior ply of plastic film such as biaxially-oriented 
polypropylene (BOPP), polyester (PET), polyethylene (PE), nylon, or 
any film suitable for printing, or to an exterior ply of paper; 
printed; displaying, containing, or comprising three or more visible 
colors (e.g., laminated woven sacks printed with three different 
shades of blue would be covered by the scope), not including the 
color of the woven fabric; regardless of the type of printing 
process used; with or without lining; with or without handles; with 
or without special closing features (including, but not limited to, 
closures that are sewn, glued, easy-open (e.g., tape or thread), re-
closable (e.g., slider, hook and loop, zipper), hot-welded, 
adhesive-welded, or press-to-close); whether finished or unfinished 
(e.g., whether or not closed on one end and whether or not in roll 
form, including, but not limited to, sheets, lay-flat, or formed in 
tubes); not exceeding one kilogram in actual weight. Laminated woven 
sacks produced in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam are subject to 
the scope regardless of the country of origin of the fabric used to 
make the sack.
    The scope of this investigation excludes laminated woven sacks 
having each of the following physical characteristics: (1) No side 
greater than 24 inches, (2) weight less than 100 grams, (3) an open 
top that is neither sealable nor closable, the rim of which is 
hemmed or sewn around the entire circumference, (4) carry handles 
sewn on the open end, (5) side gussets, and (6) either a bottom 
gusset or a square or rectangular bottom. The excluded items with 
the above-mentioned physical characteristics may be referred to as 
reusable shopping bags.
    Subject laminated woven sacks are currently classifiable under 
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) subheadings 
6305.33.0040 and 6305.33.0080. If entered with plastic coating on 
both sides of the fabric consisting of woven polypropylene strip 
and/or woven polyethylene strip, laminated woven sacks may be 
classifiable under HTSUS subheadings 3923.21.0080, 3923.21.0095, and 
3923.29.0000. If entered not closed on one end or in roll form 
(including, but not limited to, sheets, lay-flat tubing, and 
sleeves), laminated woven sacks may be classifiable under other 
HTSUS subheadings, including 3917.39.0050, 3921.90.1100, 
3921.90.1500, and 5903.90.2500. If the polypropylene strips and/or 
polyethylene strips making up the fabric measure more than 5 
millimeters in width, laminated woven sacks may be classifiable 
under other HTSUS subheadings including 4601.99.0500,4601.99.9000, 
and 4602.90.0000. Although HTSUS subheadings are provided for 
convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the 
scope is dispositive.

[[Page 51439]]

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

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Period of Investigation
IV. Scope Comments
V. Product Characteristics
VI. Selection of Respondents
VII. Determination Not To Select TKMB as Voluntary Respondent
VIII. Discussion of the Methodology
    A. Non-Market Economy Country
    B. Surrogate Country and Surrogate Value Comments
    C. Separate Rates
    D. Dumping Margin for the Separate Rate Companies Not 
Individually Examined
    E. The Vietnam-Wide Entity
    F. Application of Facts Available and Adverse Inferences
    G. Date of Sale
    H. Comparisons to Fair Value
    I. Export Price
    J. Normal Value
    K. Factor Valuation Methodology
IX. Currency Conversion
X. Adjustment Under Section 777a(f) of the Act
XI. Adjustment for Countervailable Export Subsidies
XII. Conclusion

[FR Doc. 2018-22126 Filed 10-10-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P