[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 210 (Wednesday, October 30, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58130-58131]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-23682]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-900]


Diamond Sawblades and Parts Thereof From the People's Republic of 
China: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Circumvention

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

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines 
that Protech Diamond Tools Inc. (Protech) is circumventing the 
antidumping duty order on diamond sawblades and parts thereof (diamond 
sawblades) from the People's Republic of China (China).

DATES: Applicable October 30, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Yang Jin Chun, AD/CVD Operations 
Office I, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-5760.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On May 3, 2019, in response to a request from the Diamond Sawblades 
Manufacturers' Coalition (the petitioner), Commerce published the 
initiation of the anti-circumvention inquiry to determine whether 
certain imports of diamond sawblades comprised of cores and segments 
produced in China and joined into diamond sawblades in, and exported 
from, Canada by Protech are circumventing the antidumping duty order on 
diamond sawblades from China.\1\
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    \1\ See Diamond Sawblades and Parts Thereof from the People's 
Republic of China: Initiation of Anti-Circumvention Inquiry, 84 FR 
19043 (May 3, 2019) (Initiation Notice).
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Scope of the Order

    The products subject to the order are diamond sawblades. The 
diamond sawblades subject to the order are currently classifiable under 
subheadings 8202 to 8206 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the 
United States (HTSUS), and may also enter under subheading 6804.21.00. 
The HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs 
purposes. A full description of the scope of the order is contained in 
the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\2\ The written description is 
dispositive.
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    \2\ See Memorandum, ``Diamond Sawblades and Parts Thereof from 
the People's Republic of China: Decision Memorandum for Preliminary 
Affirmative Determination of Circumvention,'' dated concurrently 
with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum) at 2-3.
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Scope of the Anti-Circumvention Inquiry

    We initiated this anti-circumvention inquiry to cover diamond 
sawblades produced in Canada by Protech with cores and segments 
produced in China and subsequently exported from Canada by Protech to 
the United States.\3\
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    \3\ See Initiation Notice, 84 FR at 19043 (``This anti-
circumvention inquiry covers diamond sawblades produced in Canada 
using cores and segments of Chinese origin and exported from Canada 
to the United States by Protech.'').
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Methodology

    Commerce is conducting this anti-circumvention inquiry in 
accordance with section 781(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended 
(the Act), and 19 CFR 351.225(h). Because Protech did not respond to 
our request for information, we made the affirmative preliminary 
determination based on adverse facts available in accordance with 
section 776(a)-(b) of the Act. For a full description of the 
methodology underlying our conclusions, see the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum. The Preliminary Decision Memorandum 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 
to all parties in the Central Records Unit, Room B8024 of the main 
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.

Preliminary Determination

    As detailed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, Commerce 
preliminarily determines that diamond sawblades produced by Protech in 
Canada using cores and segments from China and exported from Canada by 
Protech to the United States are circumventing the antidumping duty 
order on diamond sawblades from China. We therefore preliminarily 
determine that it is appropriate to include this merchandise within the 
antidumping duty order on diamond sawblades from China and to instruct 
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to suspend entries of 
merchandise produced using Chinese cores and Chinese segments by 
Protech in Canada

[[Page 58131]]

and exported by Protech to the United States.

Suspension of Liquidation

    As stated above, Commerce has made a preliminary affirmative 
finding of circumvention of the antidumping duty order on diamond 
sawblades from China for diamond sawblades assembled or completed using 
Chinese cores and Chinese segments as inputs by Protech in Canada and 
exported from Canada by Protech to the United States. This preliminary 
determination of circumvention applies to diamond sawblades assembled 
or completed using Chinese cores and Chinese segments as inputs by 
Protech in Canada. In accordance with section 19 CFR 351.225(l)(2), 
Commerce will direct CBP to suspend liquidation and to require a cash 
deposit of estimated duties on unliquidated entries of diamond 
sawblades produced (i.e., assembled or completed) using Chinese cores 
and Chinese segments by Protech in Canada that were entered, or 
withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after April 29, 2019, 
the date of initiation of this anti-circumvention inquiry. The 
suspension of liquidation instructions will remain in effect until 
further notice. Commerce will instruct CBP to require antidumping duty 
cash deposits equal to the rate established for the China-wide entity, 
i.e., 82.05 percent,\4\ for entries of such merchandise produced and 
exported by Protech, given that there is no information on the record 
regarding the sources of its Chinese-origin cores and segments.
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    \4\ See, e.g., Diamond Sawblades and Parts Thereof from the 
People's Republic of China: Final Results of Antidumping Duty 
Administrative Review; 2015-2016, 83 FR 17527, 17528 (April 20, 
2018).
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    Diamond sawblades assembled or completed in Canada using non-
Chinese origin cores and/or non-Chinese origin segments are not subject 
to this anti-circumvention inquiry. However, because Protech failed to 
cooperate with Commerce's request for information, Commerce finds that 
Protech is not currently able to identify diamond sawblades produced 
with non-Chinese origin cores and/or non-Chinese origin segments. 
Therefore, Commerce will not implement a certification process at this 
preliminary stage, and Commerce will require cash deposits on all 
entries of diamond sawblades produced and exported by Protech in 
Canada. Commerce will reconsider Protech's eligibility to participate 
in the certification process if Protech demonstrates in a future 
segment of the proceeding (i.e., a changed circumstances review) that 
diamond sawblades being entered into the United States that it produces 
are no longer sourced from Chinese cores and/or Chinese segments.\5\ We 
invite parties to comment on this issue in their case briefs.
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    \5\ See Carbon Steel Butt-Weld Pipe Fittings from the People's 
Republic of China: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of 
Circumvention of the Antidumping Duty Order, 83 FR 35205 (July 25, 
2018), and accompanying Preliminary Decision Memorandum at 15, 
unchanged in Carbon Steel Butt-Weld Pipe Fittings from the People's 
Republic of China: Final Affirmative Determination of Circumvention 
of the Antidumping Duty Order, 84 FR 29164 (June 21, 2019).
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Public Comment

    Interested parties are invited to comment on the preliminary 
determination of this anti-circumvention inquiry. Pursuant to 19 CFR 
351.309(b)(2), interested parties may submit case briefs not later than 
30 days after the date of publication of this notice. Rebuttal briefs, 
limited to issues raised in the case briefs, may be filed not later 
than five days after the time limit for filing case briefs.\6\ Pursuant 
to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2), parties who submit case or rebuttal 
briefs in this anti-circumvention inquiry 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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    \6\ See 19 CFR 351.309(d)(1)-(2).
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    Any interested party who wishes to request a hearing, or to 
participate if one is requested, must submit a written request to the 
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance within 30 days after 
the day of publication of this notice pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c). A 
request should contain: (1) The party's name, address, and telephone 
number; (2) the number of participants; (3) whether any participant is 
a foreign national; and (4) a list of issues to be discussed. If a 
request for a hearing is made, then 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. Issues raised in the hearing will 
be limited to those raised in case and rebuttal briefs.

International Trade Commission Notification

    Consistent with section 781(e) of the Act, Commerce will notify the 
International Trade Commission (ITC) of this preliminary determination 
to include the merchandise subject to this anti-circumvention inquiry 
within the antidumping duty order on diamond sawblades from China. 
Pursuant to section 781(e) of the Act, the ITC may request 
consultations concerning Commerce's proposed inclusion of the subject 
merchandise. If, after consultations, the ITC believes that a 
significant injury issue is presented by the proposed inclusion, it 
will have 60 days from the date of notification by Commerce to provide 
written advice.

Final Determination

    According to section 781(f) of the Act, Commerce shall, to the 
maximum extent practicable, make its anti-circumvention determination 
within 300 days from the date of the initiation of the inquiry.\7\ 
Therefore, Commerce intends to issue the final determination in this 
anti-circumvention inquiry by February 24, 2020.\8\
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    \7\ See 19 CFR 351.225(f)(iii)(5) (explaining that Commerce will 
issue a final anticircumvention ruling ``normally within 300 days 
from the date of the initiation of the . . . inquiry'').
    \8\ The statutory due date of the final determination is Sunday, 
February 23, 2020. The next business day is Monday, February 24, 
2020. See Notice of Clarification: Application of ``Next Business 
Day'' Rule for Administrative Determination Deadlines Pursuant to 
the Tariff Act of 1930, As Amended, 70 FR 24533 (May 10, 2005).
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    This preliminary affirmative circumvention determination is 
published in accordance with section 781(b) of the Act and 19 CFR 
351.225(f).

    Dated: October 23, 2019.
Jeffrey I. Kessler,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix

List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope of the Order
IV. Scope of the Anti-Circumvention Inquiry
V. The Period of Inquiry
VI. Statutory Framework
VII. Use of Adverse Facts Available
VIII. Statutory Analysis
IX. Other Statutory Criteria
X. Summary of Statutory Analysis
XI. Recommendation

[FR Doc. 2019-23682 Filed 10-29-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P