Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 201 / Tuesday, October 17, 2000 / Notices 61305

on the foundry coke industries in the

United States and the PRC, in the PRC

foundry coke is transported to the port

by either truck or train. For purposes of

calculating foreign inland freight, the

petitioners used the surrogate value for

rail because of the large distances

involved and the lower expense of

shipping by rail, as compared to

shipments by truck. For purposes of

initiation we have found that this is a

conservative estimate. We relied on the

data in the petition except for valuing

foreign inland freight. See Initiation

Checklist.

The petitioners assert that the

Department considers the PRC to be a

non-market economy country (‘‘NME’’)

and, therefore, constructed normal value

(‘‘NV’’) based on the factors of

production methodology pursuant to

section 773(c) of the Act. In previous

cases, the Department has determined

that the PRC is an NME country. See,

e.g., Final Determination of Sales at Less

Than Fair Value: Certain Cold-Rolled

Flat-Rolled Carbon-Quality Steel

Products from the People’s Republic of

China (‘‘Cold-Rolled Steel from China’’),

65 FR 34660 (May 31, 2000). In

accordance with section 771(18)(c)(i) of

the Act, the NME status remains in

effect until revoked by the Department.

The NME status of the PRC has not been

revoked by the Department and,

therefore, remains in effect for purposes

of the initiation of this investigation.

Accordingly, the NV of the product

appropriately is based on factors of

production valued in a surrogate market

economy country in accordance with

section 773(c) of the Act. In the course

of this investigation, all parties will

have the opportunity to provide relevant

information related to the issues of the

PRC’s NME status and the granting of

separate rates to individual exporters.

As required by 19 CFR

351.202(b)(7)(i)(C), the petitioners

provided a dumping margin calculation

using the Department’s NME

methodology described in 19 CFR

351.408. For the NV calculation, the

petitioners based the factors of

production, as defined by section

773(c)(3) of the Act (raw materials,

labor, energy and capital cost), for

foundry coke products on the quantities

of inputs used by one of the petitioning

firms, Citizens Gas & Coke. See

Initiation Checklist

The petitioners selected India as their

surrogate country. Citing the

Department’s recent determination in

cold-rolled steel from the PRC, the

petitioners stated that India is

comparable to the PRC in its level of

economic development and is a

significant producer of foundry coke

products. Based on the information

provided by the petitioners, we believe

that the petitioners’ use of India as a

surrogate country is appropriate for

purposes of initiation of this

investigation. See Initiation Checklist.

In accordance with section 773(c)(4)

of the Act, the petitioners valued factors

of production for foundry coke

products, where possible, on reasonably

available, public surrogate country data.

To value coal (the sole raw material

input), the petitioners used a value for

coking coal as reported in the Monthly

Statistics of Foreign Trade of India, Vol.

II—Imports, Directorate General of

Commercial Intelligence & Statistics,

Ministry of Commerce, Government of

India, Calcutta. Labor was valued using

the regression-based wage rate for the

PRC, in accordance with 19 CFR

351.408(c)(3). Energy (coke oven gas)

was valued using an Indian surrogate

value for natural gas, adjusted for the

relative difference in heating values

between natural gas and coke oven gas.

For overhead, SG&A and profit, the

petitioners applied rates derived from

the publicly available annual report of

an Indian producer of comparable

merchandise, Tata Iron and Steel Co.,

Ltd.

Based on comparisons of EP to NV,

calculated in accordance with section

773(c) of the Act, the estimated

dumping margin for foundry coke

products from the PRC is 226.38

percent.

Fair Value Comparisons

Based on the data provided by the

petitioners, there is reason to believe

that imports of foundry coke products

from the PRC are being, or are likely to

be, sold in the United States at less than

fair value.

Allegations and Evidence of Material

Injury and Causation

The petition alleges that the U.S.

industry producing the domestic like

product is being materially injured and

is threatened with material injury, by

reason of the imports of the subject

merchandise sold at less than NV. The

petitioners contend that the industry’s

injured condition is evident in the

declining trends in: (1) U.S. market

share, (2) domestic production, (3)

shipments, (4) capacity utilization, (5)

employment, and (6) profit margins.

The allegations of injury and

causation are supported by relevant

evidence including ITC section 332

import data, lost sales, and pricing

information. The Department assessed

the allegations and supporting evidence

regarding material injury and causation

and determined that these allegations

are supported by accurate and adequate

evidence and meet the statutory

requirements for initiation (see

Attachments to Initiation Checklist, Re:

Material Injury).

Initiation of Antidumping Investigation

Based upon our examination of the

petition on foundry coke imports from

the PRC, we find that the petition meets

the requirements of section 732 of the

Act. Therefore, we are initiating an

antidumping duty investigation to

determine whether imports of foundry

coke products from the PRC are being,

or are likely to be, sold in the United

States at less than fair value. Unless

postponed, we will make our

preliminary determination no later than

140 days after the date of this initiation.

Distribution of Copies of the Petition

In accordance with section

732(b)(3)(A) of the Act, a copy of the

public version of the petition has been

provided to the representatives of the

PRC. We will attempt to provide a copy

of the public version of the petition to

each exporter named in the petition, as

appropriate.

International Trade Commission

Notification

We have notified the ITC of our

initiation, as required by section 732(d)

of the Act.

Preliminary Determination by the ITC

The ITC will preliminarily determine,

no later than November 6, 2000,

whether there is a reasonable indication

that imports of foundry coke products

from the PRC are causing material

injury, or threatening to cause material

injury, to a U.S. industry. A negative

ITC determination will result in this

investigation being terminated;

otherwise, this investigation will

proceed according to statutory and

regulatory time limits.

This notice is published pursuant to

section 777(i) of the Act.

Dated: October 10, 2000.

Troy H. Cribb,

Acting Assistant Secretary for Import

Administration.

[FR Doc. 00–26654 Filed 10–16–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

Office of Information Technologies;

Meeting

AGENCY: International Trade

Administration, Trade Development,

Commerce.

61306 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 201 / Tuesday, October 17, 2000 / Notices

ACTION: Notice of meeting and

opportunity for collaboration.

SUMMARY: The Office of Information

Technologies in the U.S. Department of

Commerce’s International Trade

Administration will conduct a public

meeting on Wednesday, November 8,

2000 at 9 a.m., in room 3407, Herbert C.

Hoover Building, 14th and Constitution

Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230.

The purpose of the meeting is to

introduce to U.S. information

technology (IT) suppliers the IT

Management Planning Tool, a new

product for developing IT markets

overseas, and to explore ways to

collaborate in disseminating this

product to potential users. Seating is

limited. Those planning on attending

the meeting should inform the Office of

Information Technologies by October

27, 2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: TuTrang Phan or Raymond Cho in the

Office of Information Technologies at

202–482–0571 (phone), 202–482–3002

(fax), or by e-mail at

ExportIT@ita.doc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Office

of Information Technologies in the U.S.

Department of Commerce’s International

Trade Administration will conduct a

public meeting on Wednesday,

November 8, 2000 at 9 a.m., in room

3407, Herbert C. Hoover Building, 14th

and Constitution Avenue NW.,

Washington, DC 20230. The purpose of

the meeting is to introduce to U.S.

information technology (IT) suppliers a

new approach to IT market development

overseas and explore ways to

collaborate in this effort. There will be

a demonstration and discussion of the

IT Management Planning Tool, which

was created to serve as a market

stimulator for U.S. suppliers to generate

demand for their IT products and

services overseas. The IT Tool is a

software application which helps

management of businesses and

government agencies assess their

current IT usage and plan for future IT

investments that can improve their

operations. Because the IT Tool is

intended for overseas audiences, the

contents of the Tool will be localized

and translated into several languages,

including Spanish, Portuguese, Russian,

Simplified Chinese, and Traditional

Chinese. U.S. information technology

suppliers and service providers

interested in partnering with the U.S.

Department of Commerce in this unique

overseas market development effort

should attend the meeting.

The meeting is open to the public,

however, seating in room 3407 is

limited and is available on a first come,

first served basis. Those planning on

attending the meeting should inform the

Office of Information Technologies by

October 27, 2000. To request further

information concerning the meeting or

to request a copy of the Information

Technology Planning Tool, contact TuTrang Phan or Raymond Cho in the

Office of Information Technologies at

202–482–0571 by phone, 202–482–3002

by fax, or by e-mail at

ExportIT@ita.doc.gov.

Dated: October 12, 2000.

John E. McPhee,

Director, Office of Information Technologies.

[FR Doc. 00–26659 Filed 10–16–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–DR–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D. 091400A]

Marine Mammals

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Issuance of photography permit

no. 986-1592-00.

SUMMARY: Pandion Enterprises, P.O. Box

545, Summerland, California 93067,

[Permit Holder: Bruce Reitherman], has

been issued a permit to take by Level B

harassment one species, elephant

seal(Mirounga angustirostris), of nonthreatened, non-endangered marine

mammals for purposes of commercial

photography.

ADDRESSES: The permit and related

documents are available for review

upon written request or by appointment

in the following offices:

Permits Division, Office of Protected

Resources, NMFS,1315 East-West

Highway, Room 13130, Silver Spring,

MD 20910 (301/713-2289); and

Regional Administrator, Southwest

Region, NMFS, 501 West Ocean

Boulevard, Long Beach, California

90802-4213, (562/980-4000).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On August

9, 2000, notice was published in the

Federal Register(65 FR 48679) that the

above-named applicant had submitted a

request for a permit to take one species

of marine mammals by Level B

harassment during the course of

commercial photographic activities in

Piedras Blancas and Ano Nuevo,

California. The requested permit has

been issued, under the authority of

§104(c)(6) of the Marine Mammal

Protection Act of 1972, as amended (16

U.S.C. 1361 et seq.).

Dated: October 5, 2000.

Ann D. Terbush,

Chief, Permits and Documentation Division,

Office of Protected Resources, National

Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 00–26655 Filed 10–16–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

United States Patent and Trademark

Office

RIN 0651–AB25

Request for Comments on Preliminary

Draft Convention on Jurisdiction and

Foreign Judgments in Civil and

Commercial Matters

AGENCY: United States Patent and

Trademark Office, Commerce.

ACTION: Request for comments.

SUMMARY: The Hague Conference on

Private International Law is negotiating

a convention designed to create

common jurisdiction rules for

international civil and commercial cases

and to provide for international

recognition and enforcement of

judgments issued under these rules. A

Diplomatic Conference to conclude

these negotiations is scheduled to begin

in June 2001, with a final session

sometime in early 2002. The United

States Patent and Trademark Office

(USPTO) is seeking views of the public

on this effort and the consequent

potential changes to United States law

and practice.

DATES: Comments should be submitted

on or before December 1, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Persons wishing to offer

written comments should address those

comments to Director of the United

States Patent and Trademark Office, Box

4, United States Patent and Trademark

Office, Washington, DC 20231, marked

to the attention of Elizabeth Shaw.

Comments may also be submitted by

facsimile transmission to (703) 305–

7575 or by electronic mail through the

Internet to elizabeth.shaw2@uspto.gov.

All comments will be maintained for

public inspection in Room 902 of

Crystal Park II, 2121 Crystal Drive,

Arlington, Virginia.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jennifer Lucas by telephone at (703)

305–9300; by facsimile at (703) 305–

8885; by electronic mail to

jennifer.lucas@uspto.gov; or by mail

marked to the attention of Jennifer

Lucas, Attorney-Advisor, addressed to

Director of the United States Patent and