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 Department of Commerce International Trade Administration [C-570-134]
 AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.
 SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines that countervailable subsidies were provided to producers and exporters of certain metal lockers and parts thereof (metal lockers) from the People's Republic of China (China). The period of review (POR) is January 1, 2022, through December 31, 2022. In addition, Commerce, intends to rescind this review with respect to four companies. Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results.
 DATES: Applicable September 12, 2024.
 FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laura Delgado, 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) 482-1468.


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  Background On October 18, 2023, based on timely requests for review, Commerce initiated this administrative review of the countervailing duty order on metal lockers from China.[1]
                    
                     On December 18, 2023, Commerce selected Hangzhou Evernew Machinery and Equipment Company Limited (Hangzhou Evernew) and Xingyi Metalworking Technology (Zhejiang) Co., Ltd. (Xingyi Metalworking) as the mandatory respondents in this review.[2]
                    
                     On April 1, 2024, Commerce extended the deadline for the preliminary results of this review until August 30, 2024.[3]
                    
                     On July 22, 2024, Commerce tolled certain deadlines in this administrative proceeding by seven days,[4]
                    
                     and therefore the deadline for these preliminary results is September 6, 2024. For a complete description of the events that followed the initiation of this review, 
                    *see*
                     the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.[5]
                    
                     A list of topics included in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is provided in the appendix 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*. In addition, a complete version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly at 
                    *https://access.trade.gov/​public/​FRNoticesListLayout.aspx*. 
 
 Scope of the Order The product covered by the 
                    *Order*
                     is metal lockers from China. For a complete description of the scope of the 
                    *Order, see*
                     the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. Intent To Rescind Administrative Review, in Part It is Commerce's practice to rescind an administrative review of a countervailing duty order, pursuant to 19 CFR 351.213(d)(3), when there are no reviewable entries of subject merchandise during the POR for which liquidation is suspended.[6]
                    
                     Normally, upon completion of an administrative review, the suspended entries are liquidated at the countervailing duty assessment rate calculated for the review period.[7]
                    
                     Therefore, for an administrative review of a company to be conducted, there must be a reviewable, suspended entry that Commerce can instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to liquidate at the calculated countervailing duty assessment rate calculated for the review period.[8] According to the CBP import data on the record, there are four companies subject to this review that did not have reviewable entries of subject merchandise during the POR for which liquidation is suspended: Kunshan Dongchu Precision Machinery Co., Ltd.; Pingchu Chenda Storage Office Co., Ltd.; Tianjin Jia Mei Metal Furniture Ltd.; and Zhejiang Xingyi Metal Products Co., Ltd. Accordingly, in the absence of reviewable, suspended entries of subject merchandise during the POR, we intend to rescind this administrative review with respect to these four companies, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.213(d)(3). Methodology Commerce is conducting this administrative review in accordance with 751(a)(1)(A) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). For each of the subsidy programs found countervailable, Commerce preliminarily determines that there is a subsidy, 
                    *i.e.,*
                     a financial contribution by an “authority” that gives rise to a benefit to the recipient, and that the subsidy is specific.[9]
                    
                     For a full description of the methodology underlying our conclusions, including our reliance, in part, on facts otherwise available with adverse inferences pursuant to sections 776(a) and (b) of the Act, 
                    *see*
                     the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. Rate for Non-Selected Companies Under Review The Act and Commerce's regulations do not address the establishment of a rate to apply to companies not selected for individual examination when Commerce limits its examination in an administrative review pursuant to section 777A(e)(2) of the Act. However, Commerce normally determines the rates for non-selected companies in reviews in a manner that is consistent with section 705(c)(5) of the Act, which provides instructions for calculating the all-others rate in an investigation. Section 777A(e)(2) of the Act provides that “the individual countervailable subsidy rates determined under subparagraph (A) shall be used to determine the all-others rate under section 705(c)(5) {of the Act}.” Section 705(c)(5)(A) of the Act states that for companies not investigated, in general, we will determine an all-others rate by weight averaging the countervailable subsidy rates established for each of the companies individually investigated, excluding zero and 
                    *de minimis*
                     rates or any rates based entirely on facts available. Accordingly, to determine the rate for companies not selected for individual examination, Commerce's practice is to weight average the net subsidy rates for the selected mandatory respondents, excluding rates that are zero, 
                    *de minimis,*
                     or based entirely on facts available.[10]
                    
                     In this administrative review, we calculated preliminary individual estimated countervailable subsidy rates for Hangzhou Evernew and Xingyi Metalworking that are not zero, 
                    *de minimis,*
                     or based entirely on facts otherwise available. Commerce calculated the rate assigned to the companies under review that were not selected for individual examination using a simple average of the individual estimated subsidy rates calculated for the examined respondents.[11] Preliminary Results of Review As a result of this review, we preliminarily determine the following net countervailable subsidy rates exist for the POR, January 1, 2022, through December 31, 2022: Company
Subsidy rate
                             
                                (percent 
                                *ad valorem*)Hangzhou Evernew Machinery & Equipment Company 12
15.35Xingyi Metalworking Technology (Zhejiang) Co., Ltd
22.82Hangzhou Xline Machinery & Equipment Co., Ltd 13
19.09Jiangsu Wanlong Special Containers Co., Ltd
19.09
 Disclosure Commerce intends to disclose its calculations and analysis performed to interested parties for these preliminary results 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).
                    ( print page 74206) Public Comment Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c), interested parties may submit case briefs to Commerce no later than 30 days after the date of publication of this notice. 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.[14]
                    
                     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.[15]
                    
                     All briefs must be filed electronically using ACCESS. An electronically filed document must be received successfully in its entirety in ACCESS by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the established deadline. 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 briefs that should be limited to five pages total, including footnotes. In this review, we instead request that interested parties provide at the beginning of their briefs a public, executive summary for each issue raised in their briefs.[16]
                    
                     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 results in this administrative review. We request that interested parties include footnotes for relevant citations in the public 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).[17] Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), interested parties who wish to request a hearing must submit a written request to the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance, filed electronically via ACCESS by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time 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 (3) a list of issues to be discussed. Oral presentations at the hearing will be limited to issues raised in the briefs. If a request for a hearing is made, Commerce will inform parties of the scheduled date for the hearing.[18] Assessment Rates Consistent with section 751(a)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.212(b)(2), upon issuance of the final results, Commerce shall determine, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) shall assess, countervailing duties on all appropriate entries covered by this review. For the companies for which we intend to rescind this review, upon issuance of the final rescission, Commerce will instruct CBP to assess CVDs on all appropriate entries at a rate equal to the cash deposit of estimated CVDs required at the time of entry, or withdrawal from warehouse, for consumption, during the period January 1, 2022, through December 31, 2022. Commerce intends to issue assessment instructions to CBP no earlier than 35 days after the date of publication of the final results of this review in the 
                    **Federal Register**
                    . If a timely summons is filed at the U.S. Court of International Trade, the assessment instructions will direct CBP not to liquidate relevant entries until the time for parties to file a request for a statutory injunction has expired (
                    *i.e.,*
                     within 90 days of publication). Cash Deposit Requirements Pursuant to section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act, Commerce intends to instruct CBP to collect cash deposits of estimated countervailing duties in the amount indicated above with regard to shipments of subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of the final results of this review. For all non-reviewed firms, we will instruct CBP to continue to collect cash deposits of estimated countervailing duties at the most recent company-specific or all-others rate applicable to the company, as appropriate. These cash deposit instructions, when imposed, shall remain in effect until further notice. Notification to Interested Parties We are issuing and publishing these preliminary results in accordance with sections 751(a)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act, and 19 CFR 351.221(b)(4). Dated: September 6, 2024. Abdelali Elouaradia, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
 Appendix List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum I. Summary II. Background III. Scope of the 
                        *Order* IV. Intent to Rescind Administrative Review, in Part V. Analysis of China's Financial System VI. Diversification of China's Economy VII. Use of Facts Otherwise Available and Adverse Inferences VIII. Subsidies Valuation IX. Benchmarks and Interest Rates X. Analysis of Programs XI. Rates for Non-Selected Companies XII. Recommendation


# Footnotes

1.
    
                         
                        *See Initiation of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Administrative Reviews,*88 FR 71829 (October 18, 2023) (
                        *Initiation Notice*); 
                        *see also See Certain Metal Lockers and Parts Thereof from the People's Republic of China: Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Orders,*86 FR 46826 (August 20, 2021) (
                        *Order*). Back to Citation
 2.
    
                         
                        *See*
                         Memorandum, “Respondent Selection,” dated December 19, 2023. Back to Citation
 3.
    
                         
                        *See*
                         Memorandum, “Extension of Deadline for Preliminary Results of Countervailing Duty Administrative Review,” dated April 1, 2024. Back to Citation
 4.
    
                         
                        *See*
                         Memorandum, “Tolling of Deadlines for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings,” dated July 22, 2024. Back to Citation
 5.
    
                         
                        *See*
                         Memorandum, “Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary Results of the Administrative Review of the Countervailing Duty Order on Certain Metal Lockers and Parts Thereof from the People's Republic of China; 2022,” dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum). Back to Citation
 6.
    
                         
                        *See*
                         Preliminary Decision Memorandum at “Partial Rescission of Administrative Review.” Back to Citation
 7.
    
                         
                        *See*19 CFR 351.212(b)(2). Back to Citation
 8.
    
                         
                        *See*19 CFR 351.213(d)(3). Back to Citation
 9.
    
                         
                        *See*
                         sections 771(5)(B) and (D) of the Act regarding financial contribution; section 771(5)(E) of the Act regarding benefit; and section 771(5A) of the Act regarding specificity. Back to Citation
 10.
    
                         
                        *See, e.g., Certain Pasta from Italy: Final Results of the 13th (2008) Countervailing Duty Administrative Review,*75 FR 37386, 37387 (June 29, 2010). Back to Citation
 11.
    
                         With two respondents under examination, Commerce normally calculates: (A) a weighted-average of the estimated subsidy rates calculated for the examined respondents; (B) a simple average of the estimated subsidy rates calculated for the examined respondents; and (C) a weighted-average of the estimated subsidy rates calculated for the examined respondents using each company's publicly-ranged U.S. sales values for the merchandise under consideration. Commerce then compares (B) and (C) to (A) and selects the rate closest to (A) as the most appropriate rate for all other producers and exporters. 
                        *See, e.g., Ball Bearings and Parts Thereof from France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom: Final Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Reviews, Final Results of Changed-Circumstances Review, and Revocation of an Order in Part,*75 FR 53661, 53662 (September 1, 2010), and accompanying Issues and Decision Memorandum at Comment 1. As complete publicly ranged sales data were not available, Commerce based the all-others rate on a simple average of the mandatory respondents' estimated subsidy rates. Back to Citation
 12.
    
                         As discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, Commerce has found the following companies to be cross-owned with Hangzhou Evernew: Zhejiang Yinghong Metalware Co., Ltd. 13.
    
                         In the 
                        *Initiation Notice,*
                         we initiated a review of both Hangzhou Xline Machinery and Hangzhou Xline Machinery & Equipment Co., Ltd. We preliminarily determine that these are two names for the same company, and thus, we are assigning the non-selected rate to the full name of the company, Hangzhou Xline Machinery & Equipment Co., Ltd. Back to Citation
 14.
    
                         
                        *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 Procedures*). Back to Citation
 15.
    
                         
                        *See*
                         19 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2) Back to Citation
 16.
    
                         We use the term “issue” here to describe an argument that Commerce would normally address in a comment of the Issues and Decision Memorandum. Back to Citation
 17.
    
                         
                        *See APO and Service Procedures.* Back to Citation
 18.
    
                         
                        *See*19 CFR 351.310(d). Back to Citation


[FR Doc. 2024-20759 Filed 9-11-24; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P