[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 209 (Tuesday, October 31, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50383-50386]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-23649]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-791-823]


Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod From the Republic of South 
Africa: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than 
Fair Value, Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical 
Circumstances, and Preliminary Determination of No Shipments

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (the Department) preliminarily 
determines that carbon and alloy steel wire rod (wire rod) from the 
Republic of South Africa (South Africa) is being, or is likely to be, 
sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV). The period of 
investigation (POI) is January 1, 2016, through December 31, 2016.

DATES: Applicable October 31, 2017.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Moses Song or John McGowan, AD/CVD 
Operations, Office VI, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade

[[Page 50384]]

Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW., Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-5041 or (202) 482-3019, 
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). The Department 
published the notice of initiation of this investigation on April 26, 
2017.\1\ On August 21, 2017, the Department postponed the preliminary 
determination of this investigation and the revised deadline is now 
October 24, 2017.\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 Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod from Belarus, Italy, the 
Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, South Africa, Spain, the 
Republic of Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, and United 
Kingdom: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations, 82 FR 
19207 (April 26, 2017) (Initiation Notice).
    \2\ See Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod from Italy, the Republic 
of Korea, the Republic of South Africa, Spain, the Republic of 
Turkey, Ukraine and the United Kingdom: Postponement of Preliminary 
Determinations in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations, 82 FR 
39564 (August 21, 2017).
    \3\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary 
Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation of Carbon 
and Alloy Steel Wire Rod from the Republic of South Africa'' dated 
concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary 
Decision Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation

    The products covered by this investigation are wire rod from South 
Africa. For a complete description of the scope of this investigation, 
see Appendix I.

Scope Comments

    In accordance with the preamble to the Department's regulations,\4\ 
the Initiation Notice set aside a period of time for parties to raise 
issues regarding product coverage (scope).\5\ Certain interested 
parties commented on the scope of the investigation as it appeared in 
the Initiation Notice. For a summary of the product coverage comments 
and rebuttal responses submitted to the record for this investigation, 
and accompanying discussion and analysis of all comments timely 
received, see the Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum.\6\ Since the 
issuance of the Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum, certain parties 
submitted scope case briefs or scope rebuttal briefs.\7\ The Department 
will issue a final scope decision on the records of the wire rod 
investigations after considering those comments submitted in scope case 
and rebuttal briefs.
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    \4\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule, 
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997).
    \5\ See Initiation Notice, 82 FR at 19207-08.
    \6\ See Memorandum, ``Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod from 
Belarus, Italy, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, South 
Africa, Spain, the Republic of Turkey, Ukraine, the United Arab 
Emirates, and the United Kingdom: Scope Comments Decision Memorandum 
for the Preliminary Determinations,'' dated August 7, 2017 
(Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum).
    \7\ See Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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Methodology

    The Department is conducting this investigation in accordance with 
section 731 of the Act. Based on the record evidence and the 
Department's practice, we preliminarily find that mandatory respondent 
ArcelorMittal South Africa Limited (AMSA), mandatory respondent Scaw 
South Africa (Pty) Ltd. (also known as Scaw Metals Group) (Scaw), and 
Consolidated Wire Industries (CWI) are affiliated and should be 
collapsed into one entity (i.e., AMSA/Scaw/CWI).\8\ Further, a part of 
the entity, Scaw, failed to respond to the Department's antidumping 
duty questionnaire. Thus, the Department is relying on the facts 
otherwise available with adverse inference for the collapsed entity.\9\ 
For further information, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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    \8\ Id.
    \9\ See section 776(a) and (b) of the Act.
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Preliminary Determination of No Sales

    On April 26, 2017, Davsteel Division of Cape Gate (Pty) Ltd. (Cape 
Gate), one of the three South African producers/exporters named in the 
petition,\10\ timely filed a statement reporting that it had ``no 
exports, shipments, or sales'' of subject merchandise to the United 
States during the POI.\11\ Subsequently, we received information from 
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) confirming Cape Gate's claim 
that it had no entries of subject merchandise during the POI.\12\ 
Furthermore, there is no evidence on the record indicating that Cape 
Gate is affiliated with AMSA, Scaw or CWI. Based on the foregoing, the 
Department preliminarily determines that Cape Gate had no sales of 
subject merchandise during the POI, and, therefore, we preliminarily 
determine not to further examine Cape Gate as part of this 
investigation. As such, any entries of subject merchandise exported by 
Cape Gate will be subject to the All-Others Rate. For additional 
information regarding this determination, see the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum.
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    \10\ See the Petitions for the Imposition of Antidumping Duties 
on Imports of Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod from Belarus, Italy, 
the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, the Republic of South 
Africa, Spain, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, and the United 
Kingdom; and Countervailing Duties on Imports from Turkey and Italy, 
dated March 28, 2017 (the Petition), Volume VI at 1, and Volume I at 
Exhibit I-7.
    \11\ See Letter from the Department to the respondent, regarding 
``Certain Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod from the Republic of South 
Africa: No Shipment Certification,'' dated April 26, 2017 (Cape 
Gate's No-shipment Claim).
    \12\ See Memorandum to The File, entitled ``No Shipment Inquiry 
Regarding Davsteel Division of Cape Gate (PTY) Ltd. And/or Cape Gate 
(Pty) Ltd. During the Period 01/01/2016--12/31/2016,'' dated June 5, 
2017 (CBP No-shipment Claim Confirmation Memorandum).
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Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances

    In accordance with section 733(e) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.206, 
the Department preliminarily finds that critical circumstances exist 
for the collapsed entity AMSA/Scaw/CWI and all other producers and 
exporters. For a description of the methodology and results of the 
Department's critical circumstances analysis, see the Preliminary 
Decision Memorandum.

All-Others Rate

    Pursuant to section 735(c)(5)(B) of the Act, if the estimated 
weighted-average dumping margins established for all exporters and 
producers individually examined are zero, de minimis or determined 
based entirely on facts otherwise available, the Department may use any 
reasonable method to establish the estimated weighted-average dumping 
margin for all-other producers or exporters. The Department has 
preliminarily determined the estimated weighted-average dumping margin 
for AMSA/Scaw/CWI, the collapsed entity, pursuant to section 776 of the 
Act. According to section

[[Page 50385]]

735(c)(5)(A), the Department typically averages the individually 
examined respondents' rates to calculate the all-others rate. Because 
the Department is preliminarily applying the AFA rate to the collapsed 
entity, however, the Department preliminarily determines to calculate 
the ``all-others'' rate as a simple average of the alleged dumping 
margin(s) from the petition, pursuant to section 735(c)(5)(B).\13\ The 
rates in the petition, as amended, were 128.66 percent and 142.26 
percent, so the All-Others rate is 135.46 percent.\14\
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    \13\ See, e.g., Notice of Preliminary Determination of Sales at 
Less Than Fair Value: Sodium Nitrite from the Federal Republic of 
Germany, 73 FR 21909, 21912 (April 23, 2008), unchanged in Notice of 
Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value: Sodium Nitrite 
from the Federal Republic of Germany, 73 FR 38986, 38987 (July 8, 
2008), and accompanying Issues and Decision Memorandum at Comment 2; 
see also Notice of Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair 
Value: Raw Flexible Magnets from Taiwan, 73 FR 39673, 39674 (July 
10, 2008); Steel Threaded Rod from Thailand: Preliminary 
Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Affirmative 
Preliminary Determination of Critical Circumstances, 78 FR 79670, 
79671 (December 31, 2013), unchanged in Steel Threaded Rod from 
Thailand: Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and 
Affirmative Final Determination of Critical Circumstances, 79 FR 
14476, 14477 (March 14, 2014).
    \14\ See Initiation Notice, 82 FR at 19211; see also Preliminary 
Decision Memorandum.
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Preliminary Determination

    The Department preliminarily determines that the following 
estimated weighted-average dumping margins exist:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                      Estimated weighted-
                  Exporter/producer                     average dumping
                                                       margin  (percent)
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ArcelorMittal South Africa Limited, Scaw South                    142.26
 Africa (Pty) Ltd. (also known as Scaw Metals
 Group), and Consolidated Wire Industries...........
All-Others..........................................              135.46
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Suspension of Liquidation

    In accordance with section 733(d)(2) of the Act, the Department 
will direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to suspend 
liquidation of entries of subject merchandise, as described in Appendix 
I, entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after 
the date of publication of this notice in the Federal Register. 
Further, pursuant to section 733(d)(1)(B) of the Act and 19 CFR 
351.205(d), the Department will instruct CBP to require a cash deposit 
equal to the estimated weighted-average dumping margin or the estimated 
all-others rate, as follows: (1) The cash deposit rate for the 
respondents listed above will be equal to the company-specific 
estimated weighted-average dumping margins determined in this 
preliminary determination; (2) if the exporter is not a respondent 
identified above, but the producer is, then the cash deposit rate will 
be equal to the company-specific estimated weighted-average dumping 
margin established for that producer of the subject merchandise; and 
(3) the cash deposit rate for all other producers and exporters will be 
equal to the all-others estimated weighted-average dumping margin.
    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. The Department 
preliminarily finds that critical circumstances exist for imports of 
subject merchandise produced or exported by AMSA/Scaw/CWI and all other 
exporters/producers. In accordance with section 733(e)(2)(A) of the 
Act, the suspension of liquidation shall apply to unliquidated entries 
of shipments of subject merchandise from the producer or exporter 
identified in this paragraph that were entered, or withdrawn from 
warehouse, for consumption on or after the date which is 90 days before 
the publication of this notice. These suspension of liquidation 
instructions will remain in effect until further notice.

Disclosure

    Normally, the Department discloses to interested parties the 
calculations performed in connection with a preliminary determination 
within five days of any public announcement or, if there is no public 
announcement, within five days of the date of publication of the notice 
of preliminary determination in the Federal Register, in accordance 
with 19 CFR 351.224(b). However, because the Department preliminarily 
applied AFA to the collapsed entity (i.e., AMSA/Scaw/CWI) 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 the examined respondent (i.e., the collapsed entity 
referenced above) in this investigation did not provide information 
requested by the Department, and the Department preliminarily 
determines it to have been uncooperative, we will not conduct 
verification.

Public Comment

    Case briefs or other written comments may be submitted to the 
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance no later than 50 
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.\15\ 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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    \15\ 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, the 
Department intends to hold the hearing at the U.S. Department of 
Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW.,

[[Page 50386]]

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.

Final Determination

    Section 735(a)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(b)(1) provide that 
the Department will issue the final determination within 75 days after 
the date of its preliminary determination. Accordingly, the Department 
will make its final determination no later than 75 days after the 
signature date of this preliminary determination.

International Trade Commission Notification

    In accordance with section 733(f) of the Act, the Department will 
notify the International Trade Commission (ITC) of its preliminary 
determination. If the 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 these imports are materially injuring, or threaten material 
injury to, the U.S. industry.

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: October 24, 2017.
Gary Taverman,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Operations, performing the non-exclusive functions and duties of the 
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix I

Scope of the Investigation

    The products covered by this investigation are certain hot-
rolled products of carbon steel and alloy steel, in coils, of 
approximately round cross section, less than 19.00 mm in actual 
solid cross-sectional diameter. Specifically excluded are steel 
products possessing the above-noted physical characteristics and 
meeting the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) 
definitions for (a) stainless steel; (b) tool steel; (c) high-nickel 
steel; (d) ball bearing steel; or (e) concrete reinforcing bars and 
rods. Also excluded are free cutting steel (also known as free 
machining steel) products (i.e., products that contain by weight one 
or more of the following elements: 0.1 percent of more of lead, 0.05 
percent or more of bismuth, 0.08 percent or more of sulfur, more 
than 0.04 percent of phosphorous, more than 0.05 percent of 
selenium, or more than 0.01 percent of tellurium). All products 
meeting the physical description of subject merchandise that are not 
specifically excluded are included in this scope.
    The products under investigation are currently classifiable 
under subheadings 7213.91.3011, 7213.91.3015, 7213.91.3020, 
7213.91.3093, 7213.91.4500, 7213.91.6000, 7213.99.0030, 
7227.20.0030, 7227.20.0080, 7227.90.6010, 7227.90.6020, 
7227.90.6030, and 7227.90.6035 of the HTSUS. Products entered under 
subheadings 7213.99.0090 and 7227.90.6090 of the HTSUS may also be 
included in this scope if they meet the physical description of 
subject merchandise above. Although the HTSUS subheadings are 
provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written 
description of the scope of these proceedings 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. Preliminary Determination of No Shipments
VI. Affiliation and Collapsing of Affiliates
VII. Application of Facts Available and Use of Adverse Inference
    A. Application of Facts Available
    B. Use of Adverse Inference
    C. Selection and Corroboration of the AFA Rate
VIII. All-Others Rate
IX. Critical Circumstances
    A. Legal Framework
    B. Critical Circumstances Allegation
    C. Analysis
X. Conclusion

[FR Doc. 2017-23649 Filed 10-30-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P