[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 18 (Wednesday, January 29, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8379-8382]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-01865]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-549-853]
Large Top Mount Combination Refrigerator-Freezers From Thailand:
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 U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily
determines that large top mount combination refrigerator-freezers
(refrigerators) from Thailand are being, or are likely to be, sold in
the United States at less than fair value (LTFV). The period of
investigation (POI) is April 1, 2023, through March 31, 2024.
Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary
determination.
DATES: Applicable January 29, 2025.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Benito Ballesteros or Lilit
Astvatsatrian, 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 or (202) 482-6412, 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 July 16,
2024.\1\ On July 22, 2024, Commerce tolled certain deadlines in this
administrative proceeding by seven days.\2\ On November 18, 2024,
Commerce postponed the preliminary determination of this investigation
until January 22, 2025.\3\ For a complete description of the events
that followed the initiation of this investigation, see
[[Page 8380]]
the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\4\
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\1\ See Large Top Mount Combination Refrigerator-Freezers from
Thailand: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation, 89 FR
57860 (July 16, 2024) (Initiation Notice). On July 24, 2024,
Commerce published a correction to this notice. See Large Top Mount
Combination Refrigerator-Freezers from Thailand: Correction, 89 FR
59894 (July 24, 2024).
\2\ See Memorandum, ``Tolling of Deadlines for Antidumping and
Countervailing Duty Proceedings,'' dated July 22, 2024.
\3\ See Large Top Mount Combination Refrigerator-Freezers from
Thailand: Postponement of Preliminary Determination in the Less-
Than-Fair-Value Investigation, 89 FR 90668 (November 18, 2024).
\4\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary
Affirmative Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation
of Large Top Mount Combination Refrigerator-Freezers from
Thailand,'' dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this
notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
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A list of topics included in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is
provided in Appendix II of 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 at
https://access.trade.gov/public/FRNoticesListLayout.aspx.
Scope of the Investigation
The products covered by this investigation are refrigerators from
Thailand. For a complete description of the scope of this
investigation, see Appendix I.
Scope Comments
In accordance with the Preamble to Commerce's regulations,\5\ the
Initiation Notice set aside a period of time for parties to raise
issues regarding product coverage (i.e., scope).\6\ No interested party
commented on the scope of the investigation as it appeared in the
Initiation Notice. Accordingly, 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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\5\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule,
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997) (Preamble).
\6\ See Initiation Notice, 89 FR at 57861.
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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. Constructed export prices
have been calculated in accordance with section 772(b) of the Act.
Normal value is calculated in accordance with section 773 of the Act.
Furthermore, pursuant to section 776(a) and (b) of the Act, Commerce
has preliminarily relied upon facts otherwise available with adverse
inferences for Thai Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (Samsung); Sanden
Intercool (Thailand) Public Company Limited; and Sharp Appliances
(Thailand) Co., Ltd. For a full description of the methodology
underlying the preliminary determination, see the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum.
All-Others Rate
Sections 733(d)(1)(ii) and 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act provide that in
the preliminary determination Commerce shall determine an estimated
all-others rate for all exporters and producers not individually
examined. This rate shall be an amount equal to the weighted average of
the estimated weighted-average dumping margins established for
exporters and producers individually investigated, excluding any zero
and de minimis margins, and any margins determined entirely under
section 776 of the Act.
In this investigation, Commerce preliminarily assigned a rate based
entirely on facts available to Samsung. Therefore, the only rate that
is not zero, de minimis, or based entirely on facts otherwise available
is the rate calculated for Toshiba Consumer Products (Thailand) Co.,
Ltd. (Toshiba). Consequently, the rate calculated for Toshiba is also
assigned as the rate for all other producers and exporters.
Preliminary Determination
Commerce preliminarily determines that the following estimated
weighted-average dumping margins exist:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Estimated
weighted-
average
Exporter/producer dumping
margin
(percent)
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Toshiba Consumer Products (Thailand) Co., Ltd.............. 13.28
Thai Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.......................... * 37.90
Sanden Intercool (Thailand) Public Company Limited......... * 37.90
Sharp Appliances (Thailand) Co., Ltd....................... * 37.90
All Others................................................. 13.28
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* This rate is based on facts available with adverse inferences.
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. 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 estimated weighted-
average dumping margin or the estimated all-others rate, as follows:
(1) the cash deposit rate for the respondents listed above will be
equal to the company-specific estimated weighted-average dumping
margins determined in this preliminary determination; (2) if the
exporter is not a respondent identified above, but the producer is,
then the cash deposit rate will be equal to the company-specific
estimated weighted-average dumping margin established for that producer
of the subject merchandise; and (3) the cash deposit rate for all other
producers and exporters will be equal to the all-others estimated
weighted-average dumping margin. 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).
Consistent with 19 CFR 351.224(e), Commerce will analyze and, if
appropriate, correct any timely allegations of significant ministerial
errors by amending the preliminary determination. However, consistent
with 19 CFR 351.224(d), Commerce will not consider incomplete
allegations that
[[Page 8381]]
do not address the significance standard under 19 CFR 351.224(g)
following the preliminary determination. Instead, Commerce will address
such allegations in the final determination together with issues raised
in the case briefs or other written comments.
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. A timeline for the submission of case briefs and
written comments will be released to interested parties at a later
date. 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.\7\ Interested parties who submit case briefs or rebuttal briefs
in this proceeding must submit: (1) a table of contents listing each
issue; and (2) a table of authorities.\8\
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\7\ See 19 CFR 351.309(d); see also Administrative Protective
Order, Service, and Other Procedures in Antidumping and
Countervailing Duty Proceedings, 88 FR 67069, 67077 (September 29,
2023) (APO and Service Final Rule).
\8\ 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.\9\
Further, we request that interested parties limit their public
executive summary of each issue to no more than 450 words, not
including citations. We intend to use the public 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).\10\
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\9\ We use the term ``issue'' here to describe an argument that
Commerce would normally address in a comment of the Issues and
Decision Memorandum.
\10\ See APO and Service Final Rule.
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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
(1) the 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. 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 January 17, 2025, pursuant to 19 CFR 351.210(e), Toshiba
requested that Commerce postpone the final determination and that
provisional measures be extended to a period not to exceed six
months.\11\ 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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\11\ See Toshiba's Letter, ``Request to Postpone Final
Determination,'' dated January 17, 2025.
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U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) Notification
In accordance with section 733(f) of the Act, Commerce will notify
the ITC of its preliminary determination. 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 these imports 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: January 22, 2025.
Abdelali Elouaradia,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix I--Scope of the Investigation
The products covered by this investigation are large top mount
combination refrigerator-freezers with a refrigerated volume of at
least 15.6 cubic feet or 442 liters. For the purposes of this
investigation, the term ``large top mount combination refrigerator-
freezers'' consists of freestanding or built-in cabinets that have
an integral source of refrigeration using compression technology,
with all of the following characteristics:
The cabinet contains at least two interior storage
compartments accessible through two separate external doors;
The lower-most interior storage compartment(s) that is
accessible through an external door is a fresh food or convertible
compartment, but is not a freezer compartment; however, the
existence of an interior sub-compartment for ice-making in the
lower-most storage compartment does not render the lower-most
storage compartment a freezer compartment; and
There is a freezer or convertible compartment that is
mounted above the lower-most interior storage compartment(s).
For the purposes of the investigation, a fresh food compartment
is capable of storing food at temperatures above 32 degrees F (0
degrees C), a freezer compartment is capable of storing food at
temperatures at or below 32 degrees F (0 degrees C), and a
convertible compartment is capable of operating as either a fresh
food compartment or a freezer compartment, as defined in this
paragraph.
The products subject to this investigation are currently
classifiable under subheading 8418.10.0075 of the Harmonized Tariff
Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Products subject to this
investigation may also enter under HTSUS subheadings 8418.21.0090,
8418.40.0000, and 8418.69.0180. The HTSUS subheadings are provided
for convenience and customs purposes, but the written description of
the
[[Page 8382]]
merchandise subject to this scope is dispositive.
Appendix II--List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Period of Investigation
IV. Application of Facts Available and Use of Adverse Inference
V. Discussion of the Methodology
VI. Currency Conversion
VII. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2025-01865 Filed 1-28-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P