[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 91 (Friday, May 11, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26782-26783]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 07-2340]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-848]


Freshwater Crawfish Tail Meat From the People's Republic's of 
China: Rescission of New Shipper Reviews

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

SUMMARY: On March 7, 2007, the Department of Commerce (``Department'') 
published its preliminary notice of its intent to rescind the 2005/2006 
simi-annual new shipper reviews of the antidumping duty order on 
freshwater crawfish tail meat from the People's Republic of China 
(``PRC''). See Freshwater Crawfish Tail Meat from the People's Republic 
of China: Preliminary Notice of Intent to Rescind New Shipper Reviews, 
72 FR 10148 (March 7, 2007) (``Preliminary Rescission''). As we 
received no comments or new information after the publication of the 
Preliminary Rescission, we have made no changes to our preliminary 
decision to rescind the new shipper reviews of Nanjing Merry Trading 
Co., Ltd. (``Nanjing Merry''), Leping Lotai Foods Co., Ltd. (``Leping 
Lotai''), Weishan Hongrun Aquatic Food Co., Ltd. (``Weishan Hongrun''), 
and Shanghai Strong International Trading Co., Ltd. (``Shanghai 
Strong'').

EFFECTIVE DATES: May 11, 2007.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erin Begnal or Scot Fullerton, AD/CVD 
Operations, Office 9, Import Administration, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and 
Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-
1442 or (202) 482-1386, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    On March 7, 2007, the Department published its preliminary notice 
of its intent to rescind the 2005/2006 semi-annual new shipper reviews 
of the antidumping duty order on freshwater crawfish tail meat from the 
PRC, and invited parties to comment on the preliminary rescission. See 
Preliminary Rescission. In the Preliminary Rescission, the Department 
indicated, pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(ii), that interested parties 
may submit case briefs within 30 days of the date of the Preliminary 
Rescission. Additionally, the Department indicated that any interested 
party may also request a hearing within 30 days of publication of the 
Preliminary Rescission, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.310(c).
    As of April 9, 2007, however, 30 days after publication of the 
Preliminary Rescission, no interested party submitted a case brief or 
requested a hearing be held in the context of the above-referenced new 
shipper reviews.\1\
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    \1\ Although 30 days after publication of the Preliminary 
Rescission was April 7, 2007, this date fell on a Saturday. 
Therefore, case briefs and hearing requests were not due until close 
of business, the next business day (i.e., Monday, April 9, 2007), as 
the agency's regulations clarify that where the applicable time 
limit expires on a non-business day, the Secretary will accept 
documents that are filed on the next business day. See 19 CFR 
351.303(b).
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Scope of Order

    The product covered by this antidumping duty order is freshwater 
crawfish tail meat, in all its forms (whether washed or with fat on, 
whether purged or unpurged), grades, and sizes; whether frozen, fresh, 
or chilled; and regardless or how it is packed, preserved, or prepared. 
Excluded from the scope of the order are live crawfish and other whole 
crawfish, whether boiled, frozen, fresh, or chilled. Also excluded are 
saltwater crawfish and any type, and parts thereof. Freshwater crawfish 
tail meat is currently classifiable in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule 
of the United States (``HTSUS'') under item numbers 1605.40.10.10 and 
1605.40.10.90, which are the HTSUS numbers for prepared foodstuffs, 
indicating peeled crawfish tail meat and other, as introduced by U.S. 
Customs and Border Protection (``CBP'') in 2000, and HTSUS numbers 
0306.19.00.10 and 0306.29.00.00, which are reserved for fish and 
crustaceans in general. The HTSUS subheadings are provided for 
convenience and customs purposes only. The written description of the 
scope of this order is dispositive.

Period of Review

    The period of review (POR) is September 1, 2005, through February 
28, 2006.

Analysis of Comments Received

    As noted above, we received no comments from interested parties in 
response to the Preliminary Rescission. While the Department normally 
issues a separate Issues and Decision Memorandum which accompanies a 
final results/rescission notice published in the Federal Register, 
since no briefs were submitted in the above-referenced new shipper 
reviews, a separate memorandum is not required.

Final Rescission

    Concurrent with the Preliminary Rescission, the Department issued a 
memorandum detailing our analysis of the bona fides of Weishan 
Hongrun's U.S. sale and our preliminary decision to rescind the review 
based on the totality of the circumstances of the sale. See Memorandum 
to James C. Doyle, Director, AD/CVD Operations, Office 9, Import 
Administration, through Christopher D. Riker, Program Manager, AD/CVD 
Operations, Office 9, from Scot Fullerton, Senior Case Analyst, AD/CVD

[[Page 26783]]

Operations, Office 9, titled 2005/2006 antidumping Duty New Shipper 
Review of the Antidumping Duty Order on Freshwater Crawfish Tail Meat 
from the People's Republic of China: Bona Fide analysis of the Sale(s) 
Reported by Weishan Hongrun Aquatic Food Co., Ltd. (February 22, 2007). 
The Department received no comments on its preliminary decision to 
rescind the new shipper review of Weishan Hongrun, based on the 
totality of the circumstances of the sale and the non-bona fide nature 
of the transaction.
    Additionally, prior to the Preliminary Rescission, Leping Lotai, 
Nanjing Merry, and Shanghai Strong all submitted letters to the 
Department indicating they would not permit verification of the 
information placed on the record of the reviews. By not permitting the 
Department to verify the accuracy of the information each submitted to 
the Department, Leping Lotai, Nanjing Merry, and Shanghai Strong each 
failed to establish that they qualified for a separate rate. See 
Memorandum to James C. Doyle, Director, AD/CVD Operations, Office 9, 
from Scot T. Fullerton and Prentiss Lee Smith, Case Analysis, through 
Christopher D. Riker, Program Manager, titled Freshwater Crawfish Tail 
Meat from The People's Republic of China: Intent to Rescind the New 
Shipper Review of Leping Lotai Foods Co. (February 22, 2007); 
Memorandum to James C. Doyle, Director, AD/CVD Operations, Office 9, 
from Scot T. Fullerton and Prentiss Lee Smith, Case analysts, through 
Christopher D. Riker, Program Manager, titled Freshwater Crawfish Tail 
Meat from The People's Republic of China: Intent to Rescind the New 
Shipper Review of nanjing Merry Trading Co., Ltd. (February 22, 2007); 
Memorandum to James C. Doyle, Director, AD/CVD Operations, Office 9, 
from Scot T. Fullerton and Prentiss Lee Smith, Case analysts, through 
Christopher D. Riker, Program Manager, titled Freshwater Crawfish Tail 
Meat from The People's Republic of China: Intent to Rescind the New 
Shipper Review of Shanghai Strong International Trading Co., Ltd. 
(February 22, 2007).
    To establish whether a company operating in a non-market economy 
(``NME'') is sufficiently independent from the Government to be 
eligible for a separate rate, the Department analyzes each exporting 
entity under the test established in the Final Determination of Sales 
at Less Than Fair Value: Sparklers From the People's Republic of China, 
56 FR 20588 (May 6, 1991), as amplified by the Notice of Final 
Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value: Silicon Carbide from 
the People's Republic of China, 59 FR 22585 (May 2, 1994). Under the 
separate rates criteria, the Department assigns separate rates in NME 
cases only if the respondent can demonstrate the absence of both de 
jure and de facto governmental control over export activities.
    By failing to allow the Department to verify the accuracy of their 
submissions, Leping Lotai, Nanjing Merry, and Shanghai Strong did not 
demonstrate that they are free of government control and, therefore, 
are not eligible to receive a separate rate. In the notices of 
initiation, the Department stated that an exporter unable to 
demonstrate the company's eligibility for a separate rate does not meet 
the requirements of 19 CFR 351.214(b)(2)(iii) and its new shipper 
review will be rescinded. See Freshwater Crawfish Tail Meat From the 
People's Republic of China: Initiation of Antidumping Duty New Shipper 
Reviews, 71 FR 26453 (May 5, 2006) (``May 5, 2006, Initiation 
Notice''); see also Freshwater Crawfish Tail Meat From the People's 
Republic of China: Initiation of Antidumping Duty New Shipper Review, 
71 FR 30866 (May 31, 2006). Therefore, the Department preliminarily 
rescinded the new shipper reviews of Leping Lotai, Nanjing Merry, and 
Shanghai Strong. The Department received no comments on its preliminary 
decision that Leping Lotai's, Nanjing Merry's, and Shanghai Strong's 
reviews should be rescinded as they did not qualify for a separate 
rate.

Changes Since the Preliminary Results

    We have made no changes to our preliminary decision to rescind the 
new shipper reviews of Weishan Hongrun, Leping Lotai, Nanjing Merry and 
Shanghai Strong.

Assessment of Antidumping Duties

    A cash deposit of 223.01 percent ad valorem shall be collected for 
any entries produced/exported by Leping Lotai/Leping Lotai, Anhui 
Hengda Foodstuffs Co. Ltd./Nanjing Merry, Weishan Hongrun/Weishan 
Hongrun, and Jiangsu Hongda Aquatic Food Co., Ltd./Shanghai Strong.\2\ 
The Department will issue appropriate assessment instructions directly 
to CBP within 15 days of the publication of this notice.
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    \2\ The Preliminary Rescission erroneously indicated that 
Nanjing Merry produced the subject merchandise it exported during 
the POR. This merchandise, in fact, was produced by Anhui Hengda 
Foodstuffs Co. Ltd. See, e.g., May 5, 2006, Initiation Notice.
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Notification to Importers

    This notice 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 duties prior to liquidation 
of the relevant entries during this review period. Failure to comply 
with this requirement could result in the Secretary's presumption that 
reimbursement of antidumping duties occurred and the subsequent 
assessment of double antidumping duties.
    These reviews and notice are in accordance with sections 751(a)(1), 
751(a)(2)(B) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.221(b)(5).

    Dated: May 4, 2007.
Stephen J. Claeys,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 07-2340 Filed 5-10-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-M