[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 113 (Tuesday, June 11, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49154-49157]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-12738]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-067]


Forged Steel Fittings From the People's Republic of China: Final 
Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review and Final 
Determination of No Shipments; 2021-2022

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

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) determines that 
Qingdao Bestflow Industrial Co., Ltd. (Bestflow), the sole 
participating mandatory respondent in this review and an exporter of 
forged steel fittings from the People's Republic of China (China), and 
Both-Well Taizhou Steel Fittings Co., Ltd. (Both-Well), a non-
individually-examined exporter of forged steel fittings from China, 
sold subject merchandise in the United States at prices below normal 
value (NV) during the period of review (POR) November 1, 2021, through 
October 31, 2022. Further, Commerce determines that Xin Yi 
International Trade Co., Limited (Xin Yi) had no shipments of subject 
merchandise during the POR. Lastly, Commerce determines that 23 
companies for which this review was initiated are not eligible for a 
separate rate and are, thus, part of the China-wide entity.

DATES: Applicable June 11, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jinny Ahn, AD/CVD Operations, Office 
VI, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, 
U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, 
DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-0968.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Commerce published the Preliminary Results \1\ on December 7, 2023, 
and invited interested parties to comment. On March 22, 2024, we 
extended the deadline for the final results of this review until June 
4, 2024.\2\ For a complete description of the events that occurred 
since the Preliminary Results, see the Issues and Decision 
Memorandum.\3\
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    \1\ See Forged Steel Fittings from the People's Republic of 
China: Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative 
Review, Preliminary Determination of No Shipments; 2021-2022, 88 FR 
85221 (December 7, 2023) (Preliminary Results), and accompanying 
Preliminary Decision Memorandum (PDM).
    \2\ See Memorandum, ``Extension of Deadline for Final Results of 
Antidumping Duty Administrative Review,'' dated March 22, 2024.
    \3\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Final Results 
of the Administrative Review of the Antidumping Duty Order on Forged 
Steel Fittings from the People's Republic of China; 2021-2022,'' 
dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Issues 
and Decision Memorandum).
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Scope of the Order 4
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    \4\ See Forged Steel Fittings from Italy and the People's 
Republic of China: Antidumping Duty Orders, 83 FR 60397, dated 
November 26, 2018 (Order).
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    The merchandise covered by the Order is forged steel fittings from 
China. Subject carbon and alloy forged steel fittings are normally 
entered under Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) 
subheadings 7307.99.1000, 7307.99.3000, 7307.99.5045, and 7307.99.5060. 
They also may be entered under HTSUS subheadings 7307.92.3010, 
7307.92.3030, 7307.92.9000, and 7326.19.0010. The HTSUS subheadings are 
provided for convenience and customs purposes; the written description 
of the scope is dispositive. For a complete description of the scope of 
the Order, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum.

Analysis of Comments Received

    All issues raised in the parties' briefs are addressed in the 
Issues and Decision Memorandum. A list of the issues addressed is 
included as Appendix I 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 https://access.trade.gov. In addition, a complete 
version of the Issues and Decision Memorandum can be accessed

[[Page 49155]]

directly at https://access.trade.gov/public/FRNoticesListLayout.aspx.

Changes Since the Preliminary Results

    Based on our review of the record and comments received from 
interested parties regarding the Preliminary Results, we made certain 
revisions to the margin calculations for Bestflow.\5\ Further, we have 
assigned Bestflow's revised final weighted-average dumping margin to 
the non-examined separate rate respondent, Both-Well. For a discussion 
of these changes, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum.
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    \5\ See Memorandum, ``Final Results Calculation Memorandum for 
Both-Well,'' dated concurrently with this notice.
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Final Determination of No Shipments

    In the Preliminary Results, we preliminarily determined that Xin Yi 
had no shipments of subject merchandise to the United States during the 
POR.\6\ No party filed comments with respect to this preliminary 
determination and we received no information to contradict the 
preliminary finding. Therefore, we continue to find that Xin Yi had no 
shipments of subject merchandise during the POR and will issue 
appropriate liquidation instructions that are consistent with our 
``automatic assessment'' clarification for these final results.\7\
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    \6\ See Preliminary Results, 88 FR at 85222.
    \7\ See Non-Market Economy Antidumping Proceedings: Assessment 
of Antidumping Duties, 76 FR 65694 (October 24, 2011) (Assessment 
Practice Refinement).
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Separate Rate

    In our Preliminary Results, we determined that Bestflow and Both-
Well demonstrated their eligibility for separate rates.\8\ We received 
no arguments since the issuance of the Preliminary Results that provide 
a basis for reconsideration of these determinations. Therefore, for 
these final results, we continue to find that the two companies listed 
in the table in the ``Final Results of Review'' section of this notice 
are each eligible for a separate rate.
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    \8\ See Preliminary Results PDM at 7-8.
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The China-Wide Entity

    In the Preliminary Results, Commerce found that 23 companies for 
which a review was initiated did not establish their eligibility for a 
separate rate.\9\ No parties contested this finding. As such, we 
continue to determine these 23 companies identified in Appendix II are 
part of the China-wide entity. Because no party requested a review of 
the China-wide entity, and Commerce no longer considers the China-wide 
entity as an exporter conditionally subject to administrative 
reviews,\10\ we did not conduct a review of the China-wide entity. 
Thus, the weighted-average dumping margin for the China-wide entity 
rate (i.e., 142.72 percent) is not subject to change.\11\
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    \9\ Id. at 9.
    \10\ See Antidumping Proceedings: Announcement of Change in 
Department Practice for Respondent Selection in Antidumping Duty 
Proceedings and Conditional Review of the Nonmarket Economy Entity 
in NME Antidumping Duty Proceedings, 78 FR 65963, 65969-70 (November 
4, 2013).
    \11\ See Order, 83 FR at 60397.
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Rate for Non-Examined Separate Rate Respondent

    The statute and Commerce's regulations do not address what 
weighted-average dumping margin to apply to companies not selected for 
individual examination when Commerce limits its examination in an 
administrative review pursuant to section 777A(c)(2) of the Tariff Act 
of 1930, as amended (the Act). Generally, Commerce looks to section 
735(c)(5) of the Act, which provides instructions for calculating the 
all-others rate in an investigation, for guidance when calculating the 
weighted-average dumping margin for respondents that are not 
individually examined in an administrative review. Section 735(c)(5)(A) 
of the Act states that the all-others rate should be calculated by 
averaging the weighted-average dumping margins determined for 
individually-examined respondents, excluding rates that are zero, de 
minimis, or based entirely on facts available.
    In the Preliminary Results,\12\ and consistent with Commerce's 
practice,\13\ we assigned the non-examined, separate rate company 
(i.e., Both-Well) a weighted-average dumping margin equal to the 
calculated weighted-average dumping margin for the mandatory respondent 
whose rate was not zero, de minimis (i.e., less than 0.5 percent), or 
based entirely on facts available (i.e., the weighted-average dumping 
margin for Bestflow). Both-Well and the Bonney Forge Corporation, a 
domestic interested party, commented on the methodology for calculating 
this separate rate. See Issues and Decision Memorandum at Comment 5. 
For the final results, we continue to apply this approach and assign 
Both-Well the weighted-average dumping margin calculated for Bestflow 
which is not zero, de minimis, or based entirely on facts available, as 
it is consistent with the intent of, and our use of, section 
735(c)(5)(A) of the Act.\14\
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    \12\ See Preliminary Results PDM at 9.
    \13\ See, e.g., Certain Kitchen Appliance Shelving and Racks 
from the People's Republic of China: Final Determination of Sales at 
Less Than Fair Value, 74 FR 36656, 36660 (July 24, 2009).
    \14\ See Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from the Socialist 
Republic of Vietnam: Final Results and Final Partial Rescission of 
Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, 76 FR 56158, 56160 
(September 12, 2011).
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Final Results of Review

    Commerce determines that the following weighted-average dumping 
margins exist for the period November 1, 2021, through October 31, 
2022:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Weighted-
                                                              average
                        Exporter                          dumping margin
                                                             (percent)
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Qingdao Bestflow Industrial Co., Ltd....................          118.97
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        Review-Specific Rate Applicable to the Following Company
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Both-Well (Taizhou) Steel Fittings Co., Ltd.............          118.97
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Disclosure

    We intend to disclose the calculations performed in connection with 
these final results to interested parties in this review under an 
administrative protective order (APO) within five days of the date of 
publication of this notice in the Federal Register in accordance with 
19 CFR 351.224(b).

Assessment Rates

    Pursuant to section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.212(b), 
Commerce has determined, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) 
shall assess, antidumping duties on all appropriate entries covered by 
this review. Commerce intends to issue assessment instructions to CBP 
no earlier than 35 days after the date of publication of the final 
results of this review in the Federal Register. If a timely summons is 
filed at the U.S. Court of International Trade, the assessment 
instructions will direct CBP not to liquidate relevant entries until 
the time for parties to file a request for a statutory injunction has 
expired (i.e., within 90 days of publication).
    We will instruct CBP to assess antidumping duties on all 
appropriate entries covered by this review, when the company-specific 
weighted-average dumping margin is not zero or de minimis (i.e., less 
than 0.50 percent), or when the importer-specific assessment rate 
calculated in the final results of this review is not zero or de 
minimis.\15\ Where either a company's weighted-average dumping margin 
is zero or de

[[Page 49156]]

minimis, or an importer-specific assessment rate is zero or de minimis, 
we will instruct CBP to liquidate the appropriate entries without 
regard to antidumping duties.
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    \15\ See 19 CFR 351.106(c)(2).
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    For Bestflow, which has a final weighted-average dumping margin 
that is not zero or de minimis (i.e., less than 0.5 percent), we will 
instruct CBP to assess antidumping duties at the time of liquidation, 
in accordance with 19 CFR 351.212(b)(1).\16\ Because Bestflow did not 
report entered value for its U.S. sales, we intend to calculate 
importer- or customer-specific per-unit assessment rates by dividing 
the total amount of dumping calculated for all reviewed sales to the 
importer or customer by the total quantity of the same sales. Commerce 
will also calculate (estimated) ad valorem importer- or customer-
specific assessment rates with which to assess whether the per-unit 
assessment rates are de minimis. We intend to calculate estimated 
importer- (or customer-specific ad valorem assessment rates by dividing 
the total amount of dumping calculated for all reviewed U.S. sales to 
the importer or customer by the total estimated entered value of the 
same sales.\17\
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    \16\ Commerce will apply the assessment rate calculation method 
adopted in Antidumping Proceedings: Calculation of the Weighted-
Average Dumping Margin and Assessment Rate in Certain Antidumping 
Proceedings: Final Modification, 77 FR 8101 (February 14, 2012).
    \17\ See 19 CFR 351.212 (b)(1).
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    For the respondent that was not selected for individual examination 
in this administrative review, and which qualified for a separate rate 
(i.e., Both-Well), the assessment rate will be equal to the weighted-
average dumping margin from the final results (i.e., 118.97 percent). 
For the companies who are not eligible for a separate rate, and, thus, 
are part of the China-wide entity, we will instruct CBP to apply an ad 
valorem assessment rate of 142.72 percent to all POR entries of subject 
merchandise which was exported by those companies.
    Pursuant to a refinement in our non-market economy practice, for 
sales that were not reported in the U.S. sales data submitted by 
Bestflow during this review, we will instruct CBP to liquidate entries 
associated with those sales at the rate for the China-wide entity.\18\ 
Additionally, any suspended entries that entered under Xin Yi's case 
number (i.e., at Xin Yi's cash deposit rate) will be liquidated at the 
antidumping duty assessment rate for the China-wide entity.\19\
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    \18\ See Assessment Practice Refinement, 76 FR at 65694 for a 
full discussion of this practice.
    \19\ Id.
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Cash Deposit Requirements

    The following cash deposit requirements will be effective upon 
publication of the final results of this administrative review for 
shipments of the subject merchandise from China entered, or withdrawn 
from warehouse, for consumption on or after the publication date, as 
provided by section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act: (1) for companies listed 
in the table above, the cash deposit rate will be 118.97 percent; (2) 
for previously examined Chinese and non-Chinese exporters not listed 
above that have separate rates, the cash deposit rate will continue to 
be the exporter's existing cash deposit rate; (3) for all Chinese 
exporters of subject merchandise that have not been found to be 
entitled to a separate rate, the cash deposit rate will be the rate for 
the China-wide entity (i.e., 142.72 percent); and (4) for all non-
Chinese exporters of subject merchandise which have not received their 
own separate rate, the cash deposit rate will be the rate applicable to 
the Chinese exporter that supplied that non-Chinese exporter. These 
cash deposit requirements, when imposed, shall remain in effect until 
further notice.

Notification to Importers

    This notice also serves as a final reminder to importers of their 
responsibility under 19 CFR 351.402(f)(2) to file a certificate 
regarding the reimbursement of antidumping and/or countervailing duties 
prior to liquidation of the relevant entries during this POR. Failure 
to comply with this requirement could result in Commerce's presumption 
that reimbursement of antidumping and/or countervailing duties occurred 
and the subsequent assessment of double antidumping duties, and/or an 
increase in the amount of antidumping duties by the amount of the 
countervailing duties.

Administrative Protective Order

    This notice also serves as a reminder to parties subject to an APO 
of their responsibility concerning the return or destruction of 
proprietary information disclosed under APO in accordance with 19 CFR 
351.305(a)(3), which continues to govern business proprietary 
information in this segment of the proceeding. Timely written 
notification of the return or 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 
subject to sanction.

Notification to Interested Parties

    These final results and notice are issued and published in 
accordance with sections 751(a)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act, and 19 CFR 
351.213(h) and 19 CFR 351.221(b)(5).

    Dated: June 4, 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

List of Topics Discussed in the Issues and Decision Memorandum

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope of the Order
IV. Changes Since the Preliminary Results
V. Discussion of the Issues
    Comment 1: Whether Commerce Used the Latest Revised U.S. Sales 
Database for the Calculation of Bestflow's Weighted-Average Dumping 
Margin
    Comment 2: Inland Freight Surrogate Value (SV)
    Comment 3: Calculation of Labor SV Covering Multiple Years of 
the POR
    Comment 4: Whether to Continue to Apply Partial Adverse Facts 
Available (AFA) to Determine the Normal Value (NV) for the Sales of 
Merchandise Supplied by Bestflow's Uncooperative Suppliers
    Comment 5: Whether to Continue to Assign Bestflow's Weighted-
Average Dumping Margin to Both-Well
VI. Recommendation

Appendix II

Companies Not Eligible for a Separate Rate and Treated as Part of the 
China-Wide Entity

1. Cixi Baicheng Hardware Tools, Ltd.
2. Dalian Guangming Pipe Fittings Co., Ltd.
3. Eaton Hydraulics (Luzhou) Co., Ltd.
4. Eaton Hydraulics (Ningbo) Co., Ltd.
5. Jiangsu Forged Pipe Fittings Co., Ltd.
6. Jiangsu Haida Pipe Fittings Group Co.
7. Jinan Mech Piping Technology Co., Ltd.
8. Jining Dingguan Precision Parts Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
9. Lianfa Stainless Steel Pipes & Valves (Qingyun) Co., Ltd.
10. Luzhou City Chengrun Mechanics Co., Ltd.
11. Ningbo HongTe Industrial Co., Ltd.
12. Ningbo Long Teng Metal Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
13. Ningbo Save Technology Co., Ltd.
14. Ningbo Zhongan Forging Co., Ltd.
15. Q.C. Witness International Co., Ltd.
16. Shanghai Lon Au Stainless Steel Materials Co., Ltd.
17. Witness International Co., Ltd.
18. Yancheng Boyue Tube Co., Ltd.
19. Yancheng Haohui Pipe Fittings Co., Ltd.
20. Yancheng Jiuwei Pipe Fittings Co., Ltd.
21. Yancheng Manda Pipe Industry Co., Ltd.
22. Yingkou Guangming Pipeline Industry Co., Ltd.

[[Page 49157]]

23. Yuyao Wanlei Pipe Fitting Manufacturing Co., Ltd.

[FR Doc. 2024-12738 Filed 6-10-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P