[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 159 (Wednesday, August 17, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50996-50997]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-21006]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-849]


Affirmative Final Determination of Circumvention of the 
Antidumping Duty Order on Certain Cut-to-Length Carbon Steel Plate From 
the People's Republic of China

AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.

SUMMARY: On April 23, 2010, the Department of Commerce (the Department) 
published in the Federal Register the initiation of an antidumping 
circumvention inquiry to determine if certain products were 
circumventing the antidumping duty order on certain cut-to-length 
carbon steel plate from the People's Republic of China (PRC).\1\ That 
initiation indicated the merchandise subject to the inquiry was 
produced by Wuyang Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. (Wuyang), but also noted 
the Department intended ``to address whether its circumvention ruling 
will apply to particular producers, exporters, and/or importers * * * 
or to all U.S. imports'' of certain cut-to-length carbon steel plate 
from the PRC. Id. at 21242. On February 22, 2011, the Department 
published its notice of affirmative preliminary determination of 
circumvention in which it found that imports from the PRC of certain 
cut-to-length carbon steel plate products with 0.0008 percent or more 
boron, by weight, regardless of the producer or exporter or importer of 
the merchandise, and otherwise meeting the description of in-scope 
merchandise, are within the class or kind of merchandise subject to the 
order on certain cut-to-length carbon steel plate from the PRC.\2\ We 
gave interested parties an opportunity to comment on the Preliminary 
Determination, and received briefs and rebuttal briefs from various 
parties. After evaluating the comments submitted by parties, we find no 
basis for altering the preliminary determination referenced above. 
Therefore, we continue to determine that imports of the aforementioned 
merchandise are circumventing the order on cut-to-length carbon steel 
plate from the PRC.
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    \1\ See Certain Cut-to-Length Carbon Steel Plate from the 
People's Republic of China: Initiation of Antidumping Circumvention 
Inquiry, 75 FR 21241 (April 23, 2010).
    \2\ See Affirmative Preliminary Determination of Circumvention 
of the Antidumping Duty Order on Certain Cut-to-Length Carbon Steel 
Plate from the People's Republic of China, 76 FR 9749 (February 22, 
2011) (Preliminary Determination).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steve Bezirganian or Robert James, AD/
CVD Operations, Office 7, Import Administration, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and 
Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-
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1131 or (202) 482-0649, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On February 22, 2011, the Department published its notice of 
affirmative preliminary determination of circumvention. See Preliminary 
Determination. The Department preliminarily determined that imports of 
certain cut-to-length plate (defined below) were circumventing the 
antidumping duty order on certain cut-to-length carbon steel plate from 
the PRC. The Department also directed U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection (CBP) to suspend liquidation of entries of such merchandise 
and require case deposits on said entries. Id. at 9752.
    In accordance with 19 CFR 351.225(f)(3), interested parties were 
invited to comment on the preliminary determination within 20 days of 
publication of the Preliminary Determination. Id. On March 14, 2011, 
Wuyang and one of the U.S. importers of its merchandise, Stemcor USA 
Inc. (Stemcor), submitted a joint case brief. On March 14, 2011, 
ArcelorMittal USA LLC (ArcelorMittal USA) and Nucor Corporation 
(Nucor), both U.S. producers, each submitted a case brief. On March 24, 
2011, Wuyang and Stemcor submitted a joint rebuttal brief. On March 24, 
2011, ArcelorMittal USA and Nucor each submitted a rebuttal brief.
    On March 14, 2011, Wuyang and Stemcor submitted a joint request for 
a hearing. On March 28, 2011, Wuyang and Stemcor withdrew their request 
for a hearing, and no hearing was held.

Scope of the Order

    The product covered by the order is certain cut-to-length carbon 
steel plate from the People's Republic of China. Included in this 
description is hot-rolled iron and non-alloy steel universal mill 
plates (i.e., flat-rolled products rolled on four faces or in a closed 
box pass, of a width exceeding 150 mm but not exceeding 1250 mm and of 
a thickness of not less than 4 mm, not in coils and without patterns in 
relief), of rectangular shape, neither clad, plated nor coated with 
metal, whether or not painted, varnished, or coated with plastics or 
other nonmetallic substances; and certain iron and non-alloy steel 
flat-rolled products not in coils, of rectangular shape, hot-rolled, 
neither clad, plated, nor coated with metal, whether or not painted, 
varnished, or coated with plastics or other nonmetallic substances, 
4.75 mm or more in thickness and of a width which exceeds 150 mm and 
measures at least twice the thickness. Included as subject merchandise 
in the order are flat-rolled products of nonrectangular cross-section 
where such cross-section is achieved subsequent to the rolling process 
(i.e., products which have been ``worked after rolling'')--for example, 
products which have been bevelled or rounded at the edges. This 
merchandise is currently classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule 
of the United States (HTSUS) under item numbers 7208.40.3030, 
7208.40.3060, 7208.51.0030, 7208.51.0045, 7208.51.0060, 7208.52.0000, 
7208.53.0000, 7208.90.0000, 7210.70.3000, 7210.90.9000, 7211.13.0000, 
7211.14.0030, 7211.14.0045, 7211.90.0000, 7212.40.1000, 7212.40.5000, 
7212.50.0000. Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for 
convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the scope 
of the order is dispositive. Specifically excluded from subject 
merchandise

[[Page 50997]]

within the scope of the order is grade X-70 steel plate.

Merchandise Subject to the Minor Alterations Antidumping Circumvention 
Proceeding

    The merchandise subject to this antidumping circumvention inquiry 
(inquiry merchandise) consists of all merchandise produced by Wuyang 
containing 0.0008 percent or more boron, by weight, and otherwise 
meeting the requirements of the scope of the antidumping duty order as 
listed under the ``Scope of the Order'' section above, with the 
exception of merchandise meeting all of the following requirements: 
aluminum level of 0.02 percent or greater, by weight; a ratio of 3.4 to 
1 or greater, by weight, of titanium to nitrogen; and a hardenability 
test (i.e., Jominy test) result indicating a boron factor of 1.8 or 
greater. This merchandise is currently classified in the Harmonized 
Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) under item numbers 
7225.40.3050, 7225.99.0090, 7226.91.5000, and 7226.99.0180. Although 
the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs 
purposes, the written description of inquiry merchandise is 
dispositive.

Affirmative Final Determination of Circumvention

    The Department conducted this circumvention inquiry in accordance 
with section 781(c) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), 
which deals with minor alterations of merchandise. The Department noted 
in the Preliminary Determination the criteria typically used by the 
Department to make determinations in such inquiries (i.e., the overall 
physical characteristics of the merchandise, the expectations of the 
ultimate users, the use of the merchandise, the channels of marketing 
and the cost of any modification relative to the total value of the 
imported products). See Preliminary Determination at 9750-51. The 
Department preliminarily determined that imports from the PRC of 
inquiry merchandise produced by Wuyang, regardless of exporter or 
importer, are within the class or kind of merchandise subject to the 
order on certain cut-to-length carbon steel plate from the PRC. The 
Department also preliminarily determined that its ruling should apply 
regardless of producer. In other words, all merchandise containing 
0.0008 percent or more boron and otherwise meeting the description of 
the scope of the order, and not meeting the three distinguishing 
characteristics listed in the ``Merchandise Subject to the Minor 
Alterations Antidumping Circumvention Proceeding'' section above (i.e., 
aluminum level of 0.02 percent or greater, by weight; a ratio of 3.4 to 
1 or greater, by weight, of titanium to nitrogen; and a hardenability 
test (i.e., Jominy test) result indicating a boron factor of 1.8 or 
greater) are covered by the order.
    Wuyang and Stemcor, ArcelorMittal USA, and Nucor each submitted 
case briefs and rebuttal briefs. The Department has analyzed the 
comments in its accompanying issues and decision memorandum and in a 
separate final analysis memorandum. See ``Issues and Decision 
Memorandum for the Final Results of the Circumvention Inquiry of the 
Antidumping Duty Order on Certain Cut-to-Length Carbon Steel Plate from 
the People's Republic of China; Wuyang Iron and Steel Co., Ltd.'' and 
``Final Analysis Memorandum for the Circumvention Inquiry of the 
Antidumping Duty Order on Certain Cut-to-Length Carbon Steel Plate from 
the People's Republic of China; Wuyang Iron and Steel Co., Ltd.,'' 
respectively. The Department continues to find that it is appropriate 
to consider all plate with at least 0.0008 percent boron content and 
otherwise meeting the description of the scope to be covered by the 
order, unless the merchandise also possesses the three distinguishing 
characteristics referenced above. As noted in the Preliminary 
Determination, this ruling, like those in some other circumvention 
rulings, may be applied regardless of the manufacturers, exporters, or 
importers involved, and the Department considers it to be appropriate 
here to apply it on a countrywide basis, given that multiple parties 
have been found to be circumventing the order using the same general 
approach (i.e., inclusion of small, inconsequential amounts of an 
alloying element in order to change the tariff classification from non-
alloy to alloy steel).

Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation

    In accordance with 19 CFR 351.225(l)(3), we are directing CBP to 
continue to suspend liquidation of inquiry merchandise entered, or 
withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after April 23, 2010, 
the date of publication of our initiation of this inquiry. See 
Preliminary Determination at 9752; see also 19 CFR 351.225(l)(2). We 
will also instruct CBP to continue to require a cash deposit of 
estimated duties at the applicable rates for each unliquidated entry of 
the product entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or 
after April 23, 2010, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.225(l)(3).

Notice to Parties

    This notice also serves as a reminder to parties subject to 
administrative protective orders (APO) of their responsibility 
concerning the return or destruction of proprietary information 
disclosed under APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305, which continues 
to govern business proprietary information in this segment of the 
proceeding. Timely written notification of the return/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 which is subject to sanction.
    This affirmative final circumvention determination is published in 
accordance with section 781(b) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.225.

    Dated: August 9, 2011.
Paul Piquado,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 2011-21006 Filed 8-16-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P