[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 212 (Friday, November 5, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61135-61138]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-24226]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-141]


Certain Walk-Behind Snow Throwers and Parts Thereof From the 
People's Republic of China: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of 
Sales at Less Than Fair Value, Postponement of Final Determination, and 
Extension of Provisional Measures

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines 
that certain walk-behind snow throwers and parts thereof (snow 
throwers) from the People's Republic of China (China) are being, or are 
likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV). 
The period of investigation (POI) is July 1, 2020, through December 31, 
2020. Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary 
determination.

DATES: Applicable November 5, 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laurel LaCivita or Brendan Quinn, AD/
CVD Operations, Office III, Enforcement and Compliance, International 
Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution 
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-4243 or (202) 
482-5848, 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 on April 26, 
2021.\1\ On August 20, 2021, Commerce postponed the preliminary 
determination of this investigation, and the revised deadline is now 
October 26, 2021.\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. In 
addition, a complete version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum can 
be accessed directly at https://access.trade.gov/public/FRNoticesListLayout.aspx.
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    \1\ See Certain Walk-Behind Snow Throwers and Parts Thereof from 
the People's Republic of China: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value 
Investigation, 86 FR 22026 (April 26, 2021) (Initiation Notice).
    \2\ See Certain Walk-Behind Snow Throwers and Parts Thereof from 
the People's Republic of China: Postponement of Preliminary 
Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation, 86 FR 46825 
(August 20, 2021).
    \3\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary 
Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation of Certain 
Walk-Behind Snow Throwers and Parts Thereof from the People's 
Republic of China,'' 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 snow throwers from 
China. 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 (i.e., scope).\5\ MTD Products Inc. 
(the petitioner) commented on the scope of the investigation, 
requesting the addition of exclusion language to the scope as it 
appeared in the Initiation Notice.\6\ Thus, Commerce preliminarily 
modified the scope language as it appeared in the Initiation Notice to 
include the requested language in the companion countervailing duty 
(CVD) preliminary determination.\7\ See the revised scope in Appendix I 
to this notice and accompanying Preliminary Decision Memorandum for 
further discussion.
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    \4\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule, 
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997).
    \5\ See Initiation Notice, 86 FR at 22027.
    \6\ See Petitioner's Letter, ``Antidumping and Countervailing 
Duty Investigations of Certain Walk-Behind Snow Throwers from the 
People's Republic of China: Scope Comments,'' dated May 10, 2021.
    \7\ See Certain Walk-Behind Snow Throwers and Parts Thereof from 
the People's Republic of China: Preliminary Affirmative 
Countervailing Duty Determination and Alignment of Final 
Determination With Final Antidumping Duty Determination, 86 FR 
50696, 50698 (September 10, 2021).
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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 China is a non-
market economy, within the meaning of section 771(18) of the Act, 
Commerce has calculated normal value in accordance with section 773(c) 
of the Act. In addition, pursuant to sections 776(a) and (b) of the 
Act,

[[Page 61136]]

Commerce preliminarily has relied upon facts otherwise available, with 
adverse inferences, for the China-wide entity. For a full description 
of the methodology underlying Commerce's preliminary determination, see 
the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

Combination Rates

    In the Initiation Notice, Commerce stated that it would calculate 
producer/exporter combination rates for the respondents that are 
eligible for a separate rate in this investigation.\8\ Policy Bulletin 
05.1 describes this practice.\9\ In this investigation, we calculated 
producer/exporter combination rates for respondents eligible for 
separate rates.
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    \8\ See Initiation Notice, 86 FR at 22030.
    \9\ See 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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Zhejiang Zhouli Industrial Co., Ltd...........  Zhejiang Zhouli Industrial Co.,           233.41          222.87
                                                 Ltd.
Ningbo Scojet Import & Export Trade Co., Ltd..  Ninghai Yiyi Garden Tools Co.,            233.41          222.87
                                                 Ltd.
Sumec Hardware and Tools Co., Ltd.............  Zhejiang KC Mechanical &                  233.41          222.87
                                                 Electrical Co., Ltd.
Zhejiang Amerisun Technology Co., Ltd.........  Zhejiang Dobest Power Tools Co.,          233.41          222.87
                                                 Ltd.
Zhejiang KC Mechanical & Electrical Co., Ltd..  Zhejiang KC Mechanical &                  233.41          222.87
                                                 Electrical Co., Ltd.
China-Wide Entity.............................  ................................          325.03          314.49
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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 entries of subject merchandise, as described in Appendix I, 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 chart 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 
Chinese producers/exporters of subject merchandise 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 China-wide entity; and (3) for all third-county 
exporters of subject merchandise not listed in the table above, the 
cash deposit rate is the cash deposit rate applicable to the Chinese 
producer/exporter combination (or the China-wide entity) that supplied 
that third-country exporter.
    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 chart 
of estimated weighted-average dumping margins in the ``Preliminary 
Determination'' section.
    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 its calculations and analysis 
performed to interested parties in this preliminary 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).

Verification

    As provided in section 782(i)(1) of the Act, Commerce intends to 
verify the information relied upon in making its final determination. 
Normally, Commerce verifies information using standard procedures, 
including an on-site examination of original accounting, financial, and 
sales documentation. However, due to current travel restrictions in 
response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, Commerce is unable to conduct 
on-site verification in this investigation. Accordingly, we intend to 
verify the information relied upon in making the final determination 
through alternative means in lieu of an on-site verification.

Public Comment

    Case briefs or other written comments on non-scope issues may be 
submitted to the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance. A 
timeline for the submission of case briefs and written comments will be 
provided to interested parties at a later date. Rebuttal briefs, 
limited to issues raised in these case briefs, may be submitted no 
later than seven days after the deadline date for case briefs.\10\ Note 
that Commerce has modified certain of its requirements for serving 
documents containing business proprietary information until further 
notice.\11\ Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2), parties who 
submit case briefs or rebuttal briefs in this investigation are

[[Page 61137]]

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).
    \11\ See Temporary Rule Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements 
Due to COVID-19, 85 FR 17006 (March 26, 2020) (Temporary Rule); and 
Temporary Rule Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements Due to COVID-
19; Extension of Effective Period, 85 FR 41363 (July 10, 2020).
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    Additionally, interested parties may address the preliminary 
modification to the scope in scope case briefs, which may be submitted 
no later than 30 days after the publication of this preliminary 
determination in the Federal Register. Scope rebuttal briefs, limited 
to issues raised in the scope case briefs, may be submitted no later 
than seven days after the deadline for the scope case briefs. These 
deadlines apply for both the AD and CVD investigations of snow throwers 
from China.
    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 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.

Postponement of Final Determination and Extension of Provisional 
Measures

    Section 735(a)(2) of the Act provides that a final determination 
may be postponed until not later than 135 days after the date of the 
publication of the preliminary determination if, in the event of an 
affirmative preliminary determination, a request for such postponement 
is made by exporters who account for a significant proportion of 
exports of the subject merchandise, or in the event of a negative 
preliminary determination, a request for such postponement is made by 
the petitioner. Section 351.210(e)(2) of Commerce's regulations 
requires that a request by exporters for postponement of the final 
determination be accompanied by a request for extension of provisional 
measures from a four-month period to a period not more than six months 
in duration.
    On October 7, 2021, pursuant to 19 CFR 351.210(e), Zhejiang Zhouli 
Industrial Co., Ltd. requested that Commerce postpone the final 
determination and that provisional measures be extended to a period not 
to exceed six months.\12\ In accordance with section 735(a)(2)(A) of 
the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(b)(2)(ii), because: (1) The preliminary 
determination is affirmative; (2) the requesting exporter accounts for 
a significant proportion of exports of the subject merchandise; and (3) 
no compelling reasons for denial exist, Commerce is postponing the 
final determination and extending the provisional measures from a four-
month period to a period not greater than six months. Accordingly, 
Commerce will make its final determination no later than 135 days after 
the date of publication of this preliminary determination, pursuant to 
section 735(a)(2) of the Act.
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    \12\ See Zhejiang Zhouli's Letter, ``Certain Walk-Behind Snow 
Throwers and Parts Thereof from the People's Republic China: Request 
to Postpone the Final Determination,'' dated October 7, 2021.
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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 snow throwers from China 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 26, 2021.
Ryan Majerus,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and Negotiations, 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 consists of gas-
powered, walk-behind snow throwers (also known as snow blowers), 
which are snow moving machines that are powered by internal 
combustion engines and primarily pedestrian-controlled. The scope of 
the investigation covers certain snow throwers (also known as snow 
blowers), whether self-propelled or non-self-propelled, whether 
finished or unfinished, whether assembled or unassembled, and 
whether containing any additional features that provide for 
functions in addition to snow throwing. Subject merchandise also 
includes finished and unfinished snow throwers that are further 
processed in a third country or in the United States, including, but 
not limited to, assembly or any other processing that would not 
otherwise remove the merchandise from the scope of this 
investigation if performed in the country of manufacture of the in-
scope snow throwers.
    Walk-behind snow throwers subject to the scope of this 
investigation are powered by internal combustion engines which are 
typically spark ignition, single or multiple cylinder, and air-
cooled with power take off shafts.
    For the purposes of this investigation, an unfinished and/or 
unassembled snow thrower means at a minimum, a sub-assembly 
comprised of an engine, auger housing (i.e., intake frame), and an 
auger (or ``auger paddle'') packaged or imported together. An intake 
frame is the portion of the snow thrower--typically of aluminum or 
steel--that houses and protects an operator from a rotating auger 
and is the intake point for the snow. Importation of the subassembly 
whether or not accompanied by, or attached to, additional components 
including, but not limited to, handle(s), impeller(s), chute(s), 
track tread(s), or wheel(s) constitutes an unfinished snow thrower 
for purposes of this investigation. The inclusion in a third country 
of any components other than the snow thrower sub-assembly does not 
remove the snow thrower from the scope. A snow thrower is within the 
scope of this investigation regardless of the origin of its engine.
    Specifically excluded is merchandise covered by the scope of the 
antidumping and countervailing duty orders on certain vertical shaft 
engines between 225cc and 999cc, and parts thereof from the People's 
Republic of China. See Certain Vertical Shaft Engines Between 225cc 
and 999cc, and Parts Thereof, from the People's Republic of China: 
Amended Final Antidumping Duty Determination and Antidumping Duty 
Order, 86 FR 12623 (March 4, 2021) and Certain Vertical Shaft 
Engines Between 225cc and 999cc, and Parts Thereof from the People's 
Republic of China: Countervailing Duty Order and Amended Final 
Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination, 86 FR 12619 (March 4, 
2021).
    Also specifically excluded is merchandise covered by the scope 
of the antidumping and countervailing duty orders on certain 
vertical shaft engines between 99cc and Up to 225cc, and parts 
thereof from the People's Republic of China. See Certain Vertical 
Shaft Engines Between 99cc and Up to 225cc, and Parts Thereof from 
the People's Republic of China: Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Orders, 86 FR 023675 (May 4, 2021).
    The snow throwers subject to this investigation are typically 
entered under Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States 
(HTSUS) subheading 8430.20.0060. Certain parts of snow throwers 
subject to this investigation may also enter under HTSUS 
8431.49.9095. The HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and 
customs purposes only, and the written description of the 
merchandise under investigation is dispositive.

[[Page 61138]]

Appendix II

List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Period of Investigation
IV. Scope Comments
V. Discussion of the Methodology
VI. Currency Conversion
VII. Adjustment to Cash Deposit Rate for Export Subsidies
VIII. Recommendation

[FR Doc. 2021-24226 Filed 11-4-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P