[Federal Register: September 2, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 170)]
[Notices]
[Page 53675-53677]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr02se04-33]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-489-812]
Light-Walled Rectangular Pipe and Tube From Turkey: Notice of
Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value
AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of final determination of sales at less than fair value.
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EFFECTIVE DATE: September 2, 2004.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paige Rivas (Guven) at (202) 482-0651;
Drew Jackson (MMZ) at (202) 482-4406; and Mark Manning (Ozborsan/Onur
and Ozdemir) at (202) 482-5253; Office of AD/CVD Enforcement, Office
IV, Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S.
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW.
Washington, DC 20230.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Final Determination
The Department of Commerce (the Department) has determined that
light-walled rectangular pipe and tube (LWRPT) from Turkey is being
sold, or is likely to be sold, in the United States at less than fair
value (LTFV), as provided in section 735 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as
amended (the Act). The estimated margins of sales at LTFV are shown in
the Final Determination of Investigation section of this notice.
Case History
On April 13, 2004, the Department published the preliminary
determination of sales at LTFV in the antidumping duty investigation of
LWRPT from Turkey. See Light-Walled Rectangular Pipe and Tube from
Turkey; Notice of Preliminary Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair
Value and Postponement of Final Determination, 69 FR 19390 (April 13,
2004) (Preliminary Determination). Since the preliminary determination,
the following events have occurred.
The Department received a timely supplemental section D
questionnaire response from MMZ Onur Boru Profil Uretim Sanayi Ve.
Ticaret A.S. (MMZ) on April 15, 2004. On April 15 and April 19, 2004,
the Department returned untimely filed supplemental section D
questionnaire responses to Guven Boru Ve. Profil San. Ve. Ticaret Ltd.
Sti. (Guven). We conducted a verification of the sales and cost
questionnaire responses of MMZ from April 19, 2004, through April 30,
2004. MMZ timely filed its supplemental section C questionnaire
response on May 7, 2004. On June 22, 2004, the Department returned an
untimely filed, and improperly served, supplemental section A
questionnaire response to Ozdemir Boru Profil Sanayi Ve. Ticaret Ltd.
Sti. (Ozdemir). We gave interested parties an opportunity to comment on
our Preliminary Determination and our findings at verification. On July
7, 2004, the petitioners,\1\ MMZ, and Ozborsan Boru Sanayi Ve. Ticaret
and its affiliated sister company Onur Metal (collectively, Ozborsan/
Onur) submitted case briefs. On July 12, 2004, these parties submitted
rebuttal briefs. The Department did not receive a request for a public
hearing; consequently, no public hearing was held.
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\1\ The petitioners in this investigation are California Steel
and Tube, Hannibal Industries, Inc., Leavitt Tube Company, LLC,
Maruichi American Corporation, Northwest Pipe Company, Searing
Industries, Inc., Vest Inc., and Western Tube and Conduit
Corporation (collectively, the petitioners).
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Period of Investigation
The period of investigation (POI) is July 1, 2002, through June 30,
2003. See 19 CFR 351.204(b)(1).
Scope of Investigation
The merchandise covered by this investigation is LWRPT from Turkey,
which are welded carbon-quality pipe and tube of rectangular (including
square) cross-section, having a wall thickness of less than 0.156 inch.
These LWRPT have rectangular cross sections ranging from 0.375 x 0.625
inches to 2 x 6 inches, or square cross sections ranging from 0.375 to
4 inches, regardless of specification. LWRPT are currently classifiable
under item number 7306.60.5000 of the Harmonized Tariff System of the
United States (HTSUS). The HTSUS item number is provided for
convenience and customs purposes only. The written product description
of the scope is dispositive.
The term ``carbon-quality'' applies to products in which (i) iron
predominates, by weight, over each of the other contained elements,
(ii) the carbon content is 2 percent or less, by weight, and (iii) none
of the elements listed below exceeds the quantity, by weight,
respectively indicated: 1.80 percent of manganese, or 2.25 percent of
silicon, or 1.00 percent of copper, or 0.50 percent of aluminum, or
1.25 percent of chromium, or 0.30 percent of cobalt, or 0.40 percent of
lead, or 1.25 percent of nickle, or 0.30 percent of tungsten, or 0.10
percent of molybdenum, or 0.10 percent of
[[Page 53676]]
niobium (also called columbium), or 0.15 percent of vanadium, or 0.15
percent of zirconium.
Analysis of Comments Received
All issues raised in the case and rebuttal briefs by parties to
this proceeding and to which we have responded are listed in the
Appendix to this notice and addressed in the Memorandum from Jeffrey A.
May, Deputy Assistant Secretary Import Administration, to James J.
Jochum, Assistant Secretary for Import Administration, ``Issues and
Decision Memorandum,'' (Decision Memorandum) dated concurrently with
this notice, which is hereby adopted by this notice. Parties can find a
complete discussion of the issues raised in this investigation and the
corresponding recommendations in this public memorandum which is on
file in the Central Records Unit, room B-099, of the main Department of
Commerce building. In addition, a complete version of the Decision
Memorandum can be accessed directly on the Internet at: http://ia.ita.doc.gov/frn/index.html.
The paper copy and electronic version of
the Decision Memorandum are identical in content.
Facts Available
In the Preliminary Determination, we based the dumping margin for
the respondents Guven, Ozborsan/Onur, and Ozdemir on total adverse
facts available (AFA) pursuant to sections 776(a) and 776(b) of the
Act. The use of AFA was warranted in this investigation because Guven,
Ozborsan/Onur, and Ozdemir failed to timely provide complete and
useable responses to the Department's antidumping questionnaire and
supplemental questionnaires. See Preliminary Determination, 69 FR at
19393-96. The failure to provide the requested information
significantly impeded this proceeding because the Department cannot
determine a margin without complete and accurate responses to our
questionnaires. As AFA, we assigned Guven, Ozborsan/Onur, and Ozdemir
the rate of 34.89 percent, the highest margin listed in the notice of
initiation. See Notice of Initiation of Antidumping Investigations:
Light-Walled Rectangular Pipe and Tube from Mexico and Turkey, 68 FR
57667 (October 6, 2003). A complete explanation of the selection,
corroboration, and application of AFA can be found in the Preliminary
Determination. See Preliminary Determination, 69 FR at 19393-96. The
Department received comments and rebuttal from Ozborsan/Onur and the
petitioner regarding this issue. See Decision Memorandum at Comment 11.
Nothing has changed since the Preliminary Determination was issued that
would affect the Department's selection and application of facts
available. Accordingly, for the final determination, we continue apply
as AFA the rate of 34.89 percent to Guven, Ozborsan/Onur, and Ozdemir.
Verification
As provided in section 782(i) of the Act, we verified the
information submitted by MMZ for use in our final determination. We
used standard verification procedures including examination of relevant
accounting and production records, and original source documents
provided by the respondent.
Changes Since the Preliminary Determination
Based on our findings at verification, and analysis of comments
received, we have made certain adjustments to the margin calculations
used in the Preliminary Determination. These adjustments are discussed
in detail in the Decision Memorandum and are listed below:
1. Duty Drawback Adjustment
The Department disregarded the amount of duty drawback reported by
MMZ under the yield rate for coils established by the government of
Turkey (GOT) and instead calculated the duty drawback using MMZ's own
yield rate for steel coils. However, since MMZ does not separately
track its consumption of zinc, the Department relied upon the yield
rate established by the GOT for the duty drawback on zinc. See
Memorandum to the File from Drew Jackson, International Trade
Compliance Analyst, ``Calculation Memorandum for the Final
Determination,'' dated August 26, 2004 (Final Sales Calculation
Memorandum).
2. Reclassification of Certain Selling Expenses
Based on comments made by petitioners, we have reclassified the
bank commissions and letter of credit fees as direct selling expenses,
rather than indirect selling expenses, for the final determination. See
Final Sales Calculation Memorandum.
3. Revised Production Quantity for Non-Prime Products
Pursuant to a minor error reported on the first day of
verification, we have revised the production quantity for non-prime
products. See Final Sales Calculation Memorandum.
4. Adjustment to MMZ's Raw Material Costs
Based on comments made by MMZ, we have made an adjustment to MMZ's
raw material costs to account for an overstatement in these raw
material costs discovered during verification. See Memorandum from
Margaret M. Pusey, Case Accountant, to Neal M. Halper, ``Cost of
Production and Constructed Value Calculation Adjustments for the Final
Determination--MMZ Onur Boru Profil Uretim Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S.,''
dated August 26, 2004 (Final Cost Calculation Memorandum).
5. Adjustment to MMZ's Calculated Financial Expenses
Based on comments made by MMZ, we have made an adjustment to MMZ's
calculated financial expense. Specifically, we have granted an
adjustment to allow the income on certain investments to offset
financial expenses because this income was found to be interest on
short-term bank accounts. See Final Cost Calculation Memorandum.
6. Adjustment to MMZ's Calculated General and Administrative Expenses
Based upon verification findings, we have adjusted MMZ's calculated
general and administrative expenses. See Final Cost Calculation
Memorandum.
Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation
Pursuant to section 735(c)(1)(B) of the Act, we will instruct U.S.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to continue to suspend liquidation
of all entries of LWRPT from Turkey that are entered, or withdrawn from
warehouse, for consumption on or after April 13, 2004, the date of
publication of the Preliminary Determination in the Federal Register.
We will instruct CBP to continue to require a cash deposit or the
posting of a bond for each entry equal to the weighted-average amount
by which the normal value exceeds the export price, as indicated in the
chart below. These instructions suspending liquidation will remain in
effect until further notice.
Final Determination of Investigation
We determine that the following weighted-average dumping margins
exist for the period July 1, 2002, through June 30, 2003:
[[Page 53677]]
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Weighted-
average
Manufacturer/exporter margin
(percent)
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Guven Boru Ve. Profil San. Ve. Ticaret Ltd. Sti/Ozborsan 34.89
Boru Sanayi Ve. Ticaret and Onur Metal/Ozdemir Boru Profil
Sanayi Ve. Ticaret Ltd. Sti...............................
MMZ Onur Boru Profil Uretim Sanayi Ve. Ticaret A.S......... 6.12
All Others................................................. 6.12
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International Trade Commission Notification
In accordance with section 735(d) of the Act, we have notified the
International Trade Commission (ITC) of our determination. As our final
determination is affirmative, the ITC will determine, within 45 days,
whether these imports are causing material injury, or threat of
material injury, to an industry in the United States. If the ITC
determines that material injury, or threat of injury does not exist,
the proceeding will be terminated and all securities posted will be
refunded or canceled. If the ITC determines that such injury does
exist, the Department will issue an antidumping order directing CBP
officials to assess antidumping duties on all imports of the subject
merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or
after the effective date of the suspension of liquidation.
Notification Regarding Administrative Protective Order
This notice also serves as a reminder to parties subject to
administrative protective order (APO) of their responsibility
concerning the disposition of proprietary information disclosed under
APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305(a)(3). Timely written
notification of the return/destruction of APO materials or conversion
to judicial protective order is hereby requested. Failure to comply
with the regulations and the terms of an APO is a sanctionable
violation.
This determination is issued and published in accordance with
sections 735(d) and 777(i)(1) of the Act.
August 26, 2004.
James J. Jochum,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
Appendix--Issues in Decision Memorandum
Part I--MMZ
Comment 1: Whether the Department Should Deny MMZ's Duty
Drawback Claim Because MMZ Did Not Use Imported Inputs to Produce
Finished Merchandise Sold in the Home Market.
Comment 2: Whether the Department Should Add Duty Drawback to
MMZ's Cost of Production and Constructed Value.
Comment 3: Whether the Department Should Classify Certain Bank
Commissions and Letter of Credit Fees as Direct Selling Expenses
Instead of Indirect Selling Expenses.
Comment 4: Whether the Department Should Classify Sales Made
Through the U.S. Commissioned Selling Agent as CEP Transactions.
Comment 5: Whether the Department Should Collapse MMZ and
Company A for Purposes of Calculating MMZ's Coil Cost.
Comment 6: Whether the Department Should Find that the Transfer
Price Between Company A and MMZ Was Above the Market Price.
Comment 7: Whether the Upward Adjustment for Imported Coil
Purchased Through Company A to the Price Paid to Home Market
Suppliers in Effect Double-Counts the Duty-Drawback Adjustment to
Cost of Production and Constructed Value.
Comment 8: Whether the Department Should Exclude Foreign
Exchange Losses Incurred on Payables from MMZ's Computed Financial
Expense.
Comment 9: Whether the Department Should Adjust MMZ's Reported
Costs to Correct for the Overstatement in MMZ's Raw Material Cost
Discovered During Verification.
Part II--Ozborsan/Onur, Guven, and Ozdemir
Comment 10: Whether the Department Erred in its Decision to
Collapse Ozborsan/Onur, Guven, and Ozdemir Into a Single Entity.
Comment 11: Whether the Department Erred in Finding that
Ozborsan/Onur Metal Failed to Provide Requested Information to the
Department and in its Application of Total Adverse Facts Available.
[FR Doc. E4-2044 Filed 9-1-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P