[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 70 (Thursday, April 11, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14647-14650]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-07197]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[C-552-824]
Laminated Woven Sacks From the Socialist Republic of Vietnam:
Final Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Commerce) determines that
countervailable subsidies are being provided to producers and exporters
of laminated woven sacks (LWS) from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam
(Vietnam) during the period of investigation (POI),
[[Page 14648]]
January 1, 2017, through December 31, 2017.
DATES: Applicable April 11, 2019.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Thomas Martin or Ariela Garvett, 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) 482-3936 or (202)
482-3609, respectively.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
This final determination is made in accordance with section 705 of
the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Commerce published the
Preliminary Determination on August 13, 2018.\1\ In the Preliminary
Determination, Commerce aligned the final countervailing duty (CVD)
determination with the final determination in the companion antidumping
duty (AD) investigation, in accordance with section 705(a)(1) of the
Tariff Act of 1930 (the Act) and 19 CFR 351.210(b)(4). Commerce
exercised its discretion to toll all deadlines affected by the partial
federal government closure from December 22, 2018, through the
resumption of operations on January 29, 2019.\2\ If the new deadline
falls on a non-business day, in accordance with Commerce's practice,
the deadline will become the next business day. Accordingly, the
revised deadline for the final determination is now April 4, 2019.
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\1\ See Laminated Woven Sacks from the Socialist Republic of
Vietnam: Preliminary Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination
and Alignment of Final Determination with Final Antidumping Duty
Determination, 83 FR 39983 (August 13, 2018) (Preliminary
Determination).
\2\ See Memorandum to the Record from 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, ``Deadlines
Affected by the Partial Shutdown of the Federal Government,'' dated
January 28, 2019. All deadlines in this segment of the proceeding
have been extended by 40 days.
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For a complete description of the events that followed the
Preliminary Determination, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum.\3\ A
list of topics discussed in the Issues and Decision Memorandum is
included as Appendix II to this notice. 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 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 Issues and
Decisions Memorandum can be accessed directly at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/. The signed and electronic versions of the
Issues and Decision Memorandum are identical in content.
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\3\ See Memorandum, ``Issues and Decision Memorandum for the
Final Affirmative Determination of the Countervailing Duty
Investigation of Laminated Woven Sacks from the Socialist Republic
of Vietnam,'' dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this
notice (Issues and Decision Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation
The products covered by this investigation are laminated woven
sacks from Vietnam. For a full description of the scope of this
investigation, see the ``Scope of the Investigation,'' at Appendix I.
Scope Comments
During the course of this investigation and the concurrent AD
investigation of LWS from Vietnam, Commerce received scope comments
from interested parties. Commerce issued a Preliminary Scope Decision
Memorandum to address these comments.\4\ In response to Commerce's
invitation to comment on its preliminary scope determination, Commerce
received scope comments from Halsted Corporation (Halsted),\5\ and
rebuttal comments from the petitioners.\6\ However, Commerce rejected
Halsted's scope comments because they contained untimely filed new
factual information.\7\ Because Halsted's scope comments have been
removed from the record of these investigations and Halsted did not
file a redacted version of its scope comments within the deadline
allotted by Commerce, Halsted's comments have not been considered in
these investigations.\8\ Furthermore, because the petitioners' rebuttal
comments respond to Halsted's comments, which have been removed from
the record of these investigations, Commerce has not considered the
petitioners' comments. Therefore, Commerce has made no changes to the
scope of these investigations since the Preliminary Determination.
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\4\ See Memorandum, ``Antidumping and Countervailing Duty
Investigations of Laminated Woven Sacks from the Socialist Republic
of Vietnam: Preliminary Scope Determination,'' dated October 3, 2018
(Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum).
\5\ See Letter from Halstead, ``Antidumping and Countervailing
Duty Investigations of Laminated Woven Sacks from the Socialist
Republic of Vietnam: Rejection of Untimely Filed Factual
Information,'' dated December 12, 2018 (rejecting Halsted
Corporation's November 13, 2018 scope brief).
\6\ See Letter from Petitioners, ``Investigation of Laminated
Woven Sacks from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Petitioners''
Rebuttal Scope Brief,'' dated November 19, 2018.
\7\ See Letter from Commerce, ``Antidumping and Countervailing
Duty Investigations of Laminated Woven Sacks from the Socialist
Republic of Vietnam: Rejection of Untimely Filed Factual
Information,'' dated December 12, 2018; see also Letter from
Halstead, ``Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Investigations of
Laminated Woven Sacks from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam:
Request for Withdrawal of Scope Comments,'' dated February 8, 2019.
\8\ Id.
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Analysis of Subsidy Programs and Comments Received
The subsidy programs under investigation and the issues raised in
the case briefs by parties in this investigation are discussed in the
Issues and Decision Memorandum. A list of the issues that parties
raised, and to which we responded in the Issues and Decision
Memorandum, is attached to this notice at Appendix II.
Methodology
Commerce conducted this investigation in accordance with section
701 of the Act. For each of the subsidy programs found countervailable,
Commerce 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.\9\ For a full description
of the methodology underlying our final determination, see the Issues
and Decision Memorandum.
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\9\ 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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In making these findings, Commerce, in part, selected from among
the facts otherwise available and, because it determined that one or
more interested parties did not act to the best of their ability to
respond to Commerce's requests for information, Commerce used an
adverse inference where appropriate in selecting from among the facts
otherwise available.\10\ For further information, see ``Use of Facts
Otherwise Available and Adverse Inferences'' in the Issues and Decision
Memorandum.
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\10\ See sections 776(a), (b), and 782(d) of the Act.
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Changes Since the Preliminary Determination
Based on our review and analysis of the comments received from the
interested parties and our findings at verification, we made certain
changes to the respondents'' subsidy rate calculations. For a
discussion of these changes, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum.
[[Page 14649]]
Final Determination
In accordance with section 705(c)(l)(B)(i)(I) of the Act, we
calculated a rate for Duong Vinh Hoa Packaging Company Limited (DVH
Packaging), a producer/exporter of subject merchandise selected for
individual examination in this investigation. With regard to Xinsheng
Plastic Industry Co. Ltd. (Xinsheng), for the reasons described in the
Issues and Decision Memorandum, Commerce assigned a rate based entirely
on adverse facts available pursuant to section 776 of the Act.
Section 705(c)(5)(A) of the Act provides that in the final
determination, Commerce 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. DVH Packaging is the only respondent for which Commerce
calculated an estimated weighted-average dumping margin that is not
zero, de minimis , or based entirely on facts otherwise available.
Therefore, for purposes of determining the ``all-others'' rate, and
pursuant to section 705(c)(5)(A) of the Act, we are using the subsidy
rate calculated for DVH Packaging.
Commerce determines the countervailable subsidy rates to be:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subsidy
Company rate
(percent)
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Duong Vinh Hoa Packaging Company Limited.................... 3.02
Xinsheng Plastic Industry Co. Ltd........................... 198.87
All-Others.................................................. 3.02
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Disclosure
We intend to disclose the calculations performed to parties in this
proceeding, for this final determination, within five days of the date
of publication of our final determination, in accordance with 19 CFR
351.224(b).
Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation
As a result of our affirmative Preliminary Determination and
pursuant to sections 703(d)(1)(B) and (d)(2) of the Act, we instructed
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to suspend liquidation of any
entries of merchandise under consideration from Vietnam that were
entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after
August 13, 2018, which is the publication date in the Federal Register
of the Preliminary Determination. In accordance with section 703(d) of
the Act, we issued instructions to CBP to discontinue the suspension of
liquidation for CVD purposes for subject merchandise entered, or
withdrawn from warehouse, on or after December 11, 2018, but to
continue the suspension of liquidation of all entries from August 13,
2018, through December 10, 2018.
International Trade Commission Notification
In accordance with section 705(d) of the Act, we will notify the
ITC of the final affirmative determination of countervailable subsidies
are being provided to producers and exporters of LWS from Vietnam.
Because Commerce's final determination is affirmative, in accordance
with section 705(b) 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, or sales (or the likelihood of sales) for importation of LWS
from Vietnam no later than 45 days after this final determination. If
the ITC determines that such injury does not exist, this proceeding
will be terminated and all cash deposits will be refunded or canceled.
If the ITC determines that such injury does exist, Commerce will issue
a countervailing duty order directing CBP to assess, upon further
instruction by Commerce, countervailing duties on all imports of the
subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for
consumption on or after the effective date of the suspension of
liquidation, as discussed above in the ``Continuation of Suspension of
Liquidation'' section.
Notification Regarding Administrative Protective Orders
This notice will serve as the only reminder to parties subject to
an APO of their responsibility concerning the destruction of
proprietary information disclosed under APO in accordance with 19 CFR
351.305(a)(3). Timely written notification of the return/destruction of
APO materials or conversion to judicial protective order is hereby
requested. Failure to comply with the regulations and terms of an APO
is a violation which is subject to sanction.
Notification to Interested Parties
This determination is issued and published pursuant to sections
705(d) and 777(i) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(c).
Dated: April 4, 2019.
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
[[Page 14650]]
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.
Appendix II
List of Topics Discussed in the Issues and Decision Memorandum
I. Summary
II. List of Issues
III. Background
IV. Scope Comments
V. Scope of the Investigation
VI. Subsidies Valuation Information
VII. Benchmarks and Interest Rates
VIII. Use of Facts Otherwise Available and Adverse Inferences
IX. Analysis of Programs
X. Analysis of Comments
XI. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2019-07197 Filed 4-10-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P