[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 85 (Wednesday, May 1, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35062-35065]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-09457]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-156]


Aluminum Lithographic Printing Plates From the People's Republic 
of China: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than 
Fair Value, Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical 
Circumstances, and Postponement of Final Determination and Extension of 
Provisional Measures

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

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily 
determines that aluminum lithographic printing plates (printing plates) 
from 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 January 1, 2023, through June 30, 2023. 
Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary 
determination.

DATES: Applicable May 1, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Benito Ballesteros, AD/CVD Operations, 
Office IX, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-7425.

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 
initiated this investigation on October 18, 2023.\1\ On February 14, 
2024, Commerce postponed the preliminary determination of this 
investigation, and the revised deadline is now April 25, 2024.\2\
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    \1\ See Aluminum Lithographic Printing Plates from the People's 
Republic of China and Japan: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value 
Investigations, 88 FR 73316 (October 25, 2023) (Initiation Notice).
    \2\ See Aluminum Lithographic Printing Plates from the People's 
Republic of China and Japan: Postponement of Preliminary 
Determinations in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations, 89 FR 
11248 (February 14, 2024).
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    For a complete description of the events that followed the 
initiation of this investigation, see the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum.\3\ A list of topics addressed 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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    \3\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary 
Affirmative Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation 
of Aluminum Lithographic Printing Plates 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 printing plates 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\ No interested party 
commented on the scope of the investigation as it appeared in the 
Initiation Notice. Therefore, Commerce is not preliminarily modifying 
the scope language as it appeared in the Initiation Notice. See the 
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, 88 FR at 73317.
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Methodology

    Commerce is conducting this investigation in accordance with 
section 731 of the Act. Commerce has calculated constructed export 
prices in accordance with section 772(b) 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. Furthermore, pursuant to sections 776(a) and (b) of the 
Act, Commerce preliminarily has relied upon facts otherwise available, 
with adverse inferences, in determining the estimated weighted-average 
dumping margin for the China-wide entity. For a full description of the 
methodology underlying Commerce's preliminary determination, see the 
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances

    In accordance with section 733(e) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.206, 
Commerce preliminarily determines that critical

[[Page 35063]]

circumstances exist with respect to imports of printing plates from 
China for Fujifilm Printing Plate (China) Co., Ltd. (Fujifilm) and the 
China-wide entity. For a full description of the methodology and 
results of Commerce's critical circumstances analysis, see the 
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

Combination Rates

    In the Initiation Notice,\6\ 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.\7\
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    \6\ Id. at 73320.
    \7\ 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 https://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
                   Producer                                 Exporter                  average       for subsidy
                                                                                  dumping margin      offset)
                                                                                     (percent)       (percent)
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Fujifilm Printing Plate (China) Co., Ltd......  Fujifilm Printing Plate (China)            38.57           38.56
                                                 Co., Ltd.
China-wide Entity.............................  ................................          107.62          107.61
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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 Appendix I, entered, or 
withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption, 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 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 China-wide entity; and (3) for all third-county 
exporters of merchandise under consideration 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.
    Should the final estimated weighted-average dumping margin be zero 
or de minimis for the producer/exporter combination identified above, 
entries of merchandise from this producer/exporter combination will be 
excluded from the order. Such exclusion will not be applicable to 
merchandise exported to the United States by any other producer/
exporter combinations or by third country exporters that sourced from 
the excluded producer/exporter combination.
    Section 733(e)(2) of the Act provides that, given an affirmative 
determination of critical circumstances, any suspension of liquidation 
shall apply to unliquidated entries of merchandise entered, or 
withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the later of: (a) 
the date which is 90 days before the date on which the suspension of 
liquidation was first ordered; or (b) the date on which notice of 
initiation of the investigation was published. Commerce preliminarily 
finds that critical circumstances exist for imports of subject 
merchandise from Fujifilm and the China-wide entity. In accordance with 
section 733(e)(2)(A) of the Act, the suspension of liquidation shall 
apply to all unliquidated entries of merchandise that were entered, or 
withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date which is 
90 days before the publication of this notice.
    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 
countervailing duty (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 chart 
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 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 the 
case briefs, may be filed not later than five days after the date for 
filing case briefs.\8\ Interested

[[Page 35064]]

parties who submit case briefs or rebuttal briefs in this investigation 
must submit: (1) a statement of the issue; (2) a brief summary of the 
argument; and (3) a table of authorities.\9\
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    \8\ See 19 CFR 351.309(d); see also 19 CFR 351.303 (for general 
filing requirements).
    \9\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2).
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    As provided under 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2), in prior 
proceedings we have encouraged interested parties to provide an 
executive summary of their brief that should be limited to five pages 
total, including footnotes. In this investigation, we instead request 
that interested parties provide at the beginning of their briefs a 
public, executive summary for each issue raised in their briefs.\10\ 
Further, we request that interested parties limit their executive 
summary of each issue to no more than 450 words, not including 
citations. We intend to use the executive summaries as the basis of the 
comment summaries included in the issues and decision memorandum that 
will accompany the final determination in this investigation. We 
request that interested parties include footnotes for relevant 
citations in the executive summary of each issue. Note that Commerce 
has amended certain of its requirements pertaining to the service of 
documents in 19 CFR 351.303(f).\11\
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    \10\ We use the term ``issue'' here to describe an argument that 
Commerce would normally address in a comment of the Issues and 
Decision Memorandum.
    \11\ See Administrative Protective Order, Service, and Other 
Procedures in Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings, 88 FR 
67069, 67077 (September 29, 2023).
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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 (1) party's name, address, and telephone number; (2) the number of 
participants and whether any participant is a foreign national; and (3) 
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.

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. Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.210(e)(2), Commerce requires 
that requests by respondents for postponement of a 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 March 28, 2024, pursuant to 19 CFR 351.210(e), Fujifilm 
requested that Commerce postpone the final determination and extend 
provisional measures 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.
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    \12\ See Fujifilm's Letter, ``Fujifilm's Request to Postpone 
Final Determination,'' dated March 28, 2024.
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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 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: April 25, 2024.
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 is aluminum 
lithographic printing plates. Aluminum lithographic printing plates 
consist of a flat substrate containing at least 90 percent Aluminum. 
The aluminum-containing substrate is generally treated using a 
mechanical, electrochemical, or chemical graining process, which is 
followed by one or more anodizing treatments that form a hydrophilic 
layer on the aluminum-containing substrate. An image-recording, 
oleophilic layer that is sensitive to light, including but not 
limited to ultra-violet, visible, or infrared, is dispersed in a 
polymeric binder material that is applied on top of the hydrophilic 
layer, generally on one side of the aluminum lithographic printing 
plate. The oleophilic light-sensitive layer is capable of capturing 
an image that is transferred onto the plate by either light or heat. 
The image applied to an aluminum lithographic printing plate 
facilitates the production of newspapers, magazines, books, 
yearbooks, coupons, packaging, and other printed materials through 
an offset printing process, where an aluminum lithographic printing 
plate facilitates the transfer of an image onto the printed media. 
Aluminum lithographic printing plates within the scope of this 
investigation include all aluminum lithographic printing plates, 
irrespective of the dimensions or thickness of the underlying 
aluminum substrate, whether the plate requires processing after an 
image is applied to the plate, whether the plate is ready to be 
mounted to a press and used in printing operations immediately after 
an image is applied to the plate, or whether the plate has been 
exposed to light or heat to create an image on the plate or remains 
unexposed and is free of any image.
    Subject merchandise also includes aluminum lithographic printing 
plates produced from an aluminum sheet coil that has been coated 
with a light-sensitive image-recording layer in a subject country 
and that is subsequently unwound and cut to the final dimensions to 
produce a finished plate in a third country (including the United 
States), or exposed to light or heat to create an image on the plate 
in a third country (including in a foreign trade zone within the 
United States).
    Excluded from the scope of this investigation are lithographic 
printing plates manufactured using a substrate produced from a 
material other than aluminum, such as rubber or plastic.
    Aluminum lithographic printing plates are currently classifiable 
under Harmonized Tariff of the United States (HTSUS) subheadings 
3701.30.0000 and 3701.99.6060. Further, merchandise that falls 
within the scope of this investigation may also be entered into the 
United States under HTSUS

[[Page 35065]]

subheadings 3701.99.3000 and 8442.50.1000. Although the HTSUS 
subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the 
written description of the scope of this investigation is 
dispositive.

Appendix II

List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Period of Investigation
IV. Discussion of the Methodology
V. Currency Conversion
VI. Preliminary Determination of Critical Circumstances
VII. Adjustment Under Section 777A(F) of the Act
VIII. Adjustment to Cash Deposit Rate for Export Subsidies
IX. Recommendation

[FR Doc. 2024-09457 Filed 4-30-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P