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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 242 (Tuesday, December 17, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 102111-102113]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-29606]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-549-848]

Truck and Bus Tires From Thailand: Antidumping Duty Order

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

SUMMARY: Based on the affirmative final determinations by the U.S. 
Department of Commerce (Commerce) and the U.S. International Trade 
Commission (ITC), Commerce is issuing an antidumping duty order on 
truck and bus tires from Thailand.

DATES: Applicable December 17, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Faris Montgomery or Jonathan Schueler, 
AD/CVD Operations, Office VIII, Enforcement and Compliance, 
International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 
Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-1537 
or (202) 482-9175, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    In accordance with sections 735(d) and 777(i) of the Tariff Act of 
1930, as amended (the Act), on October 17, 2024, Commerce published in 
the Federal Register its affirmative final determination of sales at 
less-than-fair-value (LTFV) in the investigation of truck and bus tires 
from Thailand.\1\ As part of its determination, Commerce made an 
affirmative crticial cirumstances finding for Bridgestone Corporation 
in the LTFV investigation. Pursuant to section 735(d) of the Act, on 
December 2, 2024, the ITC notified Commerce of its affirmative final 
determination that an industry in the United States is materially 
injured, within the meaning of section 735(b)(1)(A)(i) of the Act, by 
reason of imports of truck and bus tires from Thailand that are sold in 
the United States at LTFV.\2\ On December 6, 2024, in accordance with 
section 735(d) of the Act, the ITC published in the Federal Register 
its affirmative final injury determination in this investigation in 
which it found that an industry in the United States is materially 
injured by reason of imports of truck and bus tires from Thailand.\3\ 
In addition, the ITC found that critical circumstances do not exist 
with regard to imports of truck and bus tires from Thailand.\4\
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    \1\ See Truck and Bus Tires from Thailand: Final Affirmative 
Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Final Affirmative 
Determination of Critical Circumstances, in Part, 89 FR 83636 
(October 17, 2024) (Final Determination), and accompanying Issues 
and Decision Memorandum.
    \2\ See ITC's Letter, ``Notification of ITC Final 
Determination,'' dated December 2, 2024.
    \3\ See Truck and Bus Tires from Thailand, 89 FR 97069 (December 
6, 2024) (ITC Final Determination).
    \4\ Id.
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Scope of the Order

    The products covered by this order are truck and bus tires from 
Thailand. For a complete description of the scope of this order, see 
the appendix to this notice.

Antidumping Duty Order

    Based on the above-referenced affirmative final determinations, in 
accordance with sections 735(c)(2) and 736 of the Act, Commerce is 
issuing this antidumping duty order. Moreover, because the ITC 
determined that U.S. imports of truck and bus tires from Thailand are 
materially injuring a U.S. industry, unliquidated entries of such 
merchandise from Thailand, entered or withdrawn from warehouse for 
consumption, as described below, are subject to the assessment of 
antidumping duties.
    Therefore, in accordance with section 736(a)(1) of the Act, 
Commerce will direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to 
assess, upon further instruction by Commerce, antidumping duties equal 
to the amount by which the normal value of the merchandise exceeds the 
export price or constructed export price of the merchandise, for all 
relevant entries of truck and bus tires from Thailand. With the 
exception of entries occurring after expiration of the provisional 
measures period, but before publication of the ITC's final affirmative 
injury determination, as further described below, antidumping duties 
will be assessed on unliquidated U.S. entries of truck and bus tires 
from Thailand entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on 
or after the date on which the suspension of liquidation was first 
ordered. As discussed in the Final Determination, with respect to Prinx 
Chengshan Tire (Thailand) Co., Ltd. (Prinx) this date is October 17, 
2024, the date of publication of the Final Determination in the Federal 
Register.\5\ With respect to Bridgestone Corporation and all other 
companies, this date is May 20, 2024, the date of publication of the 
Preliminary Determination in the Federal Register.\6\
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    \5\ See Final Determination, 89 FR at 83638.
    \6\ Id.; see also Truck and Bus Tires from Thailand: Preliminary 
Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, 
Preliminary Negative Determination of Critical Circumstances, and 
Postponement of Final Determination, 89 FR 43806 (May 20, 2024) 
(Preliminary Determination).

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[[Page 102112]]

Critical Circumstances

    With respect to the ITC's negative critical circumstances 
determination on imports of truck and bus tires from Thailand, we will 
instruct CBP to lift the suspension of liquidation and to refund all 
cash deposits for estimated antidumping duties with respect to entries 
of the subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for 
consumption on or after February 20, 2024, which is 90 days prior to 
the publication of the Preliminary Determination, but before May 20, 
2024, which is the date of publication of the Preliminary 
Determination.\7\
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    \7\ See Preliminary Determination.
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Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation and Cash Deposits

    Except as noted in the ``Provisional Measures'' section of this 
notice below, in accordance with section 736 of the Act, Commerce will 
instruct CBP to continue to suspend liquidation of all relevant entries 
of truck and bus tires from Thailand. These instructions suspending 
liquidation will remain in effect until further notice.
    Commerce will also instruct CBP to require cash deposits at a rate 
equal to the estimated weighted-average dumping margins listed in the 
table below. Accordingly, effective on the date of publication in the 
Federal Register of the notice of the ITC's affirmative final injury 
determination, CBP will suspend the entries of liquidation of entries 
of subject merchandise and require, at the same time as importers would 
normally deposit estimated duties on subject merchandise, a cash 
deposit equal to the weighted-average dumping margins listed in the 
table below. The all-others rate applies to all producers or exporters 
not specifically listed, as appropriate.

Estimated Weighted-Average Dumping Margins

    The estimated weighted-average dumping margins for this antidumping 
duty order are as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Weighted-
                                                                average
                    Producer or exporter                        dumping
                                                                margin
                                                               (percent)
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Bridgestone Corporation.....................................       48.39
Prinx Chengshan Tire (Thailand) Co., Ltd....................       12.33
All Others..................................................       12.33
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Provisional Measures

    Section 733(d) of the Act states that suspension of liquidation 
pursuant to an affirmative preliminary determination may not remain in 
effect for more than four months, except where exporters representing a 
significant proportion of exports of the subject merchandise request 
that Commerce extend the four-month period to no more than six months. 
Commerce published the Preliminary Determination in this investigation 
on May 20, 2024. Commerce extended the deadline for issuing its final 
determination in this investigation, which it published in the Federal 
Register on October 17, 2024. Therefore, the six-month provisional 
measures period beginning on the date of publication of the Preliminary 
Determination for Bridgestone and all other companies ended on November 
15, 2024. As noted above, suspension of liquidation for Prinx was not 
ordered until October 17, 2024, the date of publication of the Final 
Determination in the Federal Register; \8\ therefore, the six-month 
provisional measures period for Prinx has not yet ended.
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    \8\ See Final Determination, 89 FR at 83638.
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    Consequently, in accordance with section 733(d) of the Act, 
Commerce will instruct CBP to terminate the suspension of liquidation, 
and to liquidate, without regard to antidumping duties, unliquidated 
U.S. entries of truck and bus tires from Thailand entered, or withdrawn 
from warehouse, for consumption on or after November 16, 2024, the 
first day on which the provisional measures were no longer in effect 
for Bridgestone and all other companies, through the day preceding the 
date of publication of the ITC Final Determination in the Federal 
Register. Suspension of liquidation and the collection of cash deposits 
will resume on the date of publication of the ITC Final Determination 
in the Federal Register.

Establishment of the Annual Inquiry Service Lists

    On September 20, 2021, Commerce published the final rule titled 
Regulations to Improve Administration and Enforcement of Antidumping 
and Countervailing Duty Laws in the Federal Register.\9\ On September 
27, 2021, Commerce published a notification titled Scope Ruling 
Application; Annual Inquiry Service List; and Informational Sessions in 
the Federal Register.\10\ The Final Rule and Procedural Guidance 
provide that Commerce will maintain an annual inquiry service list for 
each order or suspended investigation, and any interested party 
submitting a scope ruling application or request for circumvention 
inquiry shall serve a copy of the application or request on the persons 
on the annual inquiry service list for that order, as well as any 
companion order covering the same merchandise from the same country of 
origin.\11\
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    \9\ See Regulations to Improve Administration and Enforcement of 
Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Laws, 86 FR 52300 (September 20, 
2021) (Final Rule).
    \10\ See Scope Ruling Application; Annual Inquiry Service List; 
and Informational Sessions, 86 FR 53205 (September 27, 2021) 
(Procedural Guidance).
    \11\ Id.
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    In accordance with the Procedural Guidance, for orders published in 
the Federal Register after November 4, 2021, Commerce will create an 
annual inquiry service list segment in Commerce's online e-filing and 
document management system, Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Electronic Service System (ACCESS), available at https://access.trade.gov, within five business days of publication of the 
notice of the order. Each annual inquiry service list will be 
maintained in ACCESS, under each case number, and under a specific 
segment type called ``AISL-Annual Inquiry Service List.'' \12\
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    \12\ This segment will be combined with the ACCESS Segment 
Specific Information (SSI) field which will display the month in 
which the notice of the order or suspended investigation was 
published in the Federal Register, also known as the anniversary 
month. For example, for an order under case number A-000-000 that 
was published in the Federal Register in January, the relevant 
segment and SSI combination will appear in ACCESS as ``AISL-January 
Anniversary.'' Note that there will be only one annual inquiry 
service list segment per case number, and the anniversary month will 
be pre-populated in ACCESS.
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    Interested parties who wish to be added to the annual inquiry 
service list for an order must submit an entry of appearance in the 
annual inquiry service list segment in ACCESS for the order within 30 
days after the date of publication of the order in the Federal 
Register. For ease of administration, Commerce requests that a law firm 
with more than one attorney representing an interested party in an 
order designate a lead attorney to be included on the annual inquiry 
service list. Commerce will finalize the annual inquiry service list 
within five business days thereafter. As mentioned in the Procedural 
Guidance, the new annual inquiry service list will be in place until 
the following year, when the Opportunity Notice for the anniversary 
month of the order is published in the Federal Register.

[[Page 102113]]

    Commerce may update an annual inquiry service list at any time, as 
needed, based on interested parties' amendments to their entries of 
appearance to remove, or otherwise modify, their list of members and 
representatives, or to update contact information. Changes or 
announcements pertaining to these procedures will be posted to the 
ACCESS website at https://access.trade.gov.

Special Instructions for Petitioners and Foreign Governments

    In the Final Rule, Commerce stated that, ``after an initial request 
and placement on the annual inquiry service list, both petitioners and 
foreign governments will automatically be placed on the annual inquiry 
service list in the years that follow.'' \13\ Accordingly, as stated 
above, the petitioners and foreign governments should submit their 
initial entry of appearance after publication of this notice in the 
Federal Register in order to appear in the first annual inquiry service 
list. Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.225(n)(3), the petitioners and foreign 
governments will not need to resubmit their entries of appearance each 
year to continue to be included on the annual inquiry service list. 
However, the petitioners and foreign governments are responsible for 
making amendments to their entries of appearance during the annual 
update to the annual inquiry service list in accordance with the 
procedures described above.
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    \13\ See Final Rule, 86 FR 52335.
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Notification to Interested Parties

    This notice constitutes the antidumping duty order with respect to 
truck and bus tires from Thailand, pursuant to section 736(a) of the 
Act. Interested parties can find a list of antidumping duty orders 
currently in effect at https://www.trade.gov/data-visualization/adcvd-proceedings.
    This antidumping duty order is issued and published in accordance 
with section 736(a) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.211(b).

    Dated: December 11, 2024.
Abdelali Elouaradia,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix

Scope of the Order

    The scope of the order covers truck and bus tires. Truck and bus 
tires are new pneumatic tires, of rubber, with a truck or bus size 
designation. Truck and bus tires covered by the scope may be tube-type, 
tubeless, radial, or non-radial (also known as bias construction or 
bias-ply). Subject tires have, at the time of importation, the symbol 
``DOT'' on the sidewall, certifying that the tire conforms to 
applicable motor vehicle safety standards. Subject tires may also have 
one of the following suffixes in their tire size designation, which 
also appear on the sidewall of the tire:
    TR--Identifies tires for service on trucks or buses to 
differentiate them from similarly sized passenger car and light truck 
tires; and
    HC--Identifies a 17.5 inch rim diameter code for use on low 
platform trailers.
    All tires with a ``TR'' or ``HC'' suffix in their size designations 
are covered by the scope regardless of their intended use.
    In addition, all tires that lack one of the above suffix markings 
are included in the scope, as well as all tires that include any other 
prefix or suffix in their sidewall markings, are included in the scope, 
regardless of their intended use, as long as the tire is of a size that 
fits trucks or busses. Sizes that fit trucks and busses include, but 
are not limited to, the numerical size designations listed in the 
``Truck-Bus'' section of the Tire and Rim Association Year Book, as 
updated annually. The scope includes all tires that are of a size that 
fits trucks or busses, unless the tire falls within one of the specific 
exclusions set out below.
    Truck and bus tires, whether or not mounted on wheels or rims, are 
included in the scope. However, if a subject tire is imported mounted 
on a wheel or rim, only the tire is covered by the scope. Subject 
merchandise includes truck and bus tires produced in the subject 
country whether mounted on wheels or rims in the subject country or in 
a third country. Truck and bus tires are covered whether or not they 
are accompanied by other parts, e.g., a wheel, rim, axle parts, bolts, 
nuts, etc. Truck and bus tires that enter attached to a vehicle are not 
covered by the scope.
    Specifically excluded from the scope are the following types of 
tires: (1) pneumatic tires, of rubber, that are not new, including 
recycled and retreaded tires; (2) non-pneumatic tires, such as solid 
rubber tires; and (3) tires that exhibit each of the following physical 
characteristics: (a) the designation ``MH'' is molded into the tire's 
sidewall as part of the size designation; (b) the tire incorporates a 
warning, prominently molded on the sidewall, that the tire is for 
``Mobile Home Use Only;'' and (c) the tire is of bias construction 
(also known as non-radial construction) as evidenced by the fact that 
the construction code included in the size designation molded into the 
tire's sidewall is not the letter ``R.''
    The subject merchandise is currently classifiable under Harmonized 
Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) subheadings: 4011.20.1015 
and 4011.20.5020. Tires meeting the scope description may also enter 
under the following HTSUS subheadings: 4011.90.1010, 4011.90.1050, 
4011.90.2010, 4011.90.2050, 4011.90.8010, 4011.90.8050, 8708.70.4530, 
8708.70.4546, 8708.70.4548, 8708.70.4560, 8708.70.6030, 8708.70.6045, 
8708.70.6060, and 8716.90.5059.
    While HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and for 
customs purposes, the written description of the subject merchandise is 
dispositive.

[FR Doc. 2024-29606 Filed 12-16-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
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