[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 173 (Thursday, September 6, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45213-45215]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-19333]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-069]


Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation of Rubber Bands From the 
People's Republic of China: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of 
Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Preliminary Affirmative Determination 
of Critical Circumstances

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

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines 
that rubber bands from the 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 July 1, 2017, through 
December 31, 2017. Interested parties are invited to comment on this 
preliminary determination.

DATES: Applicable September 6, 2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul Stolz or Stephanie Berger, AD/CVD 
Operations, Office III, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-4474 or (202) 482-2483, 
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). We published 
the notice of initiation of this investigation on February 27, 2018.\1\ 
On June 26, 2018, we postponed the preliminary determination of this 
investigation. The revised deadline is now August 29, 2018.\2\ For a 
complete description of the events that followed the initiation of this 
investigation, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\3\ A list of 
topics included 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, and to all parties in the Central Records 
Unit, room B8024 of the main Department of Commerce building. In 
addition, a complete version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum can 
be accessed directly at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/. The signed 
and the electronic versions of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum are 
identical in content.
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    \1\ See Rubber Bands from the People's Republic of China, Sri 
Lanka, and Thailand: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value 
Investigations, 83 FR 8424, 8425 (February 27, 2018) (Initiation 
Notice).
    \2\ See Rubber Bands from the People's Republic of China and 
Thailand: Postponement of Preliminary Determinations in the Less-
Than-Fair-Value Investigations, 83 FR 29748 (June 26, 2018).
    \3\ See the memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the 
Preliminary Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation 
of Rubber Bands from the People's Republic of China,'' dated August 
29, 2018 (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation

    The products covered by this investigation are rubber bands 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\ Certain interested 
parties provided comments on the scope of the investigation as it 
appeared in the Initiation Notice.\6\ For a summary of the product 
coverage comments and rebuttal responses submitted to the record for 
this preliminary determination, and accompanying discussion and 
analysis of all comments timely received, see the Preliminary Scope 
Decision Memorandum.\7\ We are preliminarily modifying the scope 
language as it appeared in the Initiation Notice. See the revised 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.
    \6\ See Greenbrier's and Conair's letter, ``Rubber Bands from, 
Thailand, China and Sri Lanka: Scope Comments,'' dated March 12, 
2018; Jafferjee's letter, ``Rubber Bands from Thailand: Scope 
Comments,'' dated March 12, 2018; and, the petitioner's letter, 
``Petition for the Imposition of Antidumping and Countervailing 
Duties on Rubber Bands from Thailand and China--Rebuttal Scope 
Comments,'' dated March 22, 2018.
    \7\ See Memorandum, ``Rubber Bands from Thailand and the 
People's Republic of China: Scope Comments Decision Memorandum for 
the Preliminary Determination,'' dated concurrently with this notice 
(Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum).
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Methodology

    We are conducting this investigation in accordance with section 731 
of the Act. Pursuant to section 776(a) and (b) of the Act, we have 
preliminarily relied upon facts otherwise available, with adverse 
inferences, for the China-wide entity because it did not respond to our 
requests for information. Specifically, all companies to which Commerce 
issued quantity and value (Q&V) questionnaires failed to respond.\8\ 
Thus, no companies have demonstrated their eligibility for a separate 
rate and are preliminarily found to be part of the China-wide entity. 
Furthermore, we find that the China-wide entity's lack of 
participation, including the failure of certain parts of the China-wide 
entity to submit Q&V information, constitutes circumstances under which 
it is reasonable to conclude that the China-wide entity as a whole 
failed to cooperate to the best of its ability to comply with 
Commerce's request for information. For a full description of the 
methodology underlying Commerce's preliminary determination, see the 
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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    \8\ See the memorandum, ``Antidumping Duty Investigation of 
Rubber Bands from the People's Republic of China: Delivery of 
Quantity and Value Questionnaire to Exporters/Producers,'' dated 
March 6, 2018.
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Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances

    On June 11, 2018, as revised on August 7, 2018, the petitioner 
timely filed a critical circumstances allegation, pursuant to section 
733(e)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.206, alleging that critical 
circumstances exist with respect to imports of rubber bands from 
China.\9\ Based on the failure of all respondents, and thus the China-
wide entity, to cooperate to the best of their ability to comply with 
Commerce's requests for information, we preliminarily determine that 
massive imports of rubber bands from China existed for the China-wide 
entity, based on adverse facts available, pursuant to section 
733(e)(1)(B) of the Act. In addition, we have preliminarily determined 
that there is a reasonable basis to believe or suspect that importers 
knew, or should have known, that merchandise was being sold for less 
than fair value and that those sales were likely to cause material 
injury in accordance with section 733(e)(1)(A)(ii) of the Act.
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    \9\
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    For a full description of the methodology and the results of 
Commerce's analysis, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

[[Page 45214]]

Preliminary Determination

    We preliminarily determine that the following estimated weighted-
average dumping margin exists:

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                                                                                     Estimated
                                                                                     weighted-
                   Producer                                 Exporter                  average      Cash deposit
                                                                                  dumping margin     (percent)
                                                                                     (percent)
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China-Wide Entity.............................  China-Wide Entity...............           27.27           26.65
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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 the scope of the investigation 
entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the 
date of publication of this notice in the Federal Register, 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 estimated weighted-average dumping margin, 
adjusted for export subsidies, as indicated in the chart above.
    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 subject 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 all imports of subject 
merchandise from China. In accordance with section 733(e)(2)(A) of the 
Act, the suspension of liquidation shall apply to all unliquidated 
entries of subject merchandise 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 export subsidies, Commerce has offset the 
calculated estimated weighted-average dumping margin by the appropriate 
rate(s). Any such cash deposit 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 
margin calculated in this preliminary determination unadjusted for the 
export subsidies at the time the CVD provisional measures expire. These 
suspension of liquidation instructions will remain in effect until 
further notice.

Disclosure

    Normally, Commerce discloses to interested parties the calculations 
performed in connection with a 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). However, because Commerce 
preliminarily applied AFA to companies in this investigation in 
accordance with section 776 of the Act, and the applied AFA rate is 
based solely on the petition, there are no calculations to disclose.

Verification

    Because all respondents did not provide information requested by 
Commerce and we preliminarily determine that all respondents to have 
been uncooperative, verification will not be conducted.

Public Comment

    Case briefs or other written comments may be submitted to the 
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance no later than 30 
days after the date of publication of the preliminary determination, 
unless the Secretary alters the time limit. Rebuttal briefs, limited to 
issues raised in case briefs, may be submitted no later than five days 
after the deadline date for case briefs.\10\ Pursuant to 19 CFR 
351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2), parties who submit case briefs or rebuttal 
briefs in this investigation are encouraged to submit with each 
argument: (1) A statement of the issue; (2) a brief summary of the 
argument; and (3) a table of authorities.
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    \10\ See 19 CFR 351.309; see also 19 CFR 351.303 (for general 
filing requirements).
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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 party's name, address, and telephone number, the number of 
participants, whether any participant is a foreign national, and a list 
of the issues to be discussed. If a request for a hearing is made, we 
intend to hold the hearing at the U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 
Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230, 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.

International Trade Commission (ITC) Notification

    In accordance with section 733(f) of the Act, we notified the ITC 
of our preliminary affirmative determination of sales at LTFV and 
preliminary determination of critical circumstances. If the Commerce 
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 and whether critical circumstances exist.

[[Page 45215]]

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: August 29, 2018.
Christian Marsh,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix I

Scope of the Investigation

    The products subject to this investigation are bands made of 
vulcanized rubber, with a flat length, as actually measured end-to-
end by the band lying flat, no less than \1/2\ inch and no greater 
than 10 inches; with a width, which measures the dimension 
perpendicular to the length, actually of at least \3/64\ inch and no 
greater than 2 inches; and a wall thickness actually from 0.020 inch 
to 0.125 inch. Vulcanized rubber has been chemically processed into 
a more durable material by the addition of sulfur or other 
equivalent curatives or accelerators. Subject products are included 
regardless of color or inclusion of printed material on the rubber 
band's surface, including but not limited to, rubber bands with 
printing on them, such as a product name, advertising, or slogan, 
and printed material (e.g., a tag) fastened to the rubber band by an 
adhesive or another temporary type of connection. The scope includes 
vulcanized rubber bands which are contained or otherwise exist in 
various forms and packages, such as, without limitation, vulcanized 
rubber bands included within a desk accessory set or other type of 
set or package, and vulcanized rubber band balls. The scope excludes 
products that consist of an elastomer loop and durable tag all-in-
one, and bands that are being used at the time of import to fasten 
an imported product.
    Excluded from the scope of this investigation are vulcanized 
rubber bands of various sizes with arrow shaped rubber protrusions 
from the outer diameter that exceeds at the anchor point a wall 
thickness of 0.125 inches and where the protrusion is used to loop 
around, secure and lock in place.
    Excluded from the scope of this investigation are yarn/fabric-
covered vulcanized rubber hair bands, regardless of size.
    Merchandise covered by this investigation is currently 
classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States 
(HTSUS) under subheading 4016.99.3510. Merchandise covered by the 
scope may also enter under HTSUS subheading 4016.99.6050. While the 
HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, 
the written description of the scope of the investigation is 
dispositive.

Appendix II

List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Period of Investigation
IV. Scope Comments
V. Discussion of the Methodology
    A. Non-Market Economy Country
    B. China-Wide Entity
    C. Use of Facts Otherwise Available With an Adverse Inference
    D. Application of Facts Available
    E. Application of Facts Available With an Adverse Inference
    F. Selection and Corroboration of the AFA Rate
    G. Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical 
Circumstances
    1. Legal Framework
    2. Critical Circumstances Allegation
    3. Analysis
VI. Adjustment under Section 777a(F) of the Act
VII. Adjustments to Cash Deposit Rates for Export Subsidies
VIII. Verification
IX. Conclusion

[FR Doc. 2018-19333 Filed 9-5-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P