[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 37 (Monday, February 25, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12716-12717]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-04148]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-570-916; C-570-917]
Laminated Woven Sacks From the People's Republic of China:
Negative Final Determination of Circumvention
AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (``the Department'') continues to
determine that the laminated woven sacks subject to this inquiry are
not circumventing the antidumping and countervailing duty orders on
laminated woven sacks from the People's Republic of China (``PRC''), as
provided in section 781(d) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (``the
Act'').\1\
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\1\ See Notice of Antidumping Duty Order: Laminated Woven Sacks
From the People's Republic of China, 73 FR 45941 (August 7, 2008);
see also Laminated Woven Sacks From the People's Republic of China:
Countervailing Duty Order, 73 FR 45955 (August 7, 2008),
(collectively, ``Orders'').
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DATES: Effective Date: February 25, 2013.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Irene Gorelik, Office 9, Import
Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of
Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC
20230; telephone (202) 482-6905.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
[[Page 12717]]
Scope of the Orders
The merchandise covered by the orders \2\ is laminated woven sacks.
Laminated woven sacks are bags or sacks consisting of one or more plies
of fabric consisting of woven polypropylene strip and/or woven
polyethylene strip, regardless of the width of the strip; with or
without an extrusion coating of polypropylene and/or polyethylene on
one or both sides of the fabric; laminated by any method either to an
exterior ply of plastic film such as biaxially-oriented polypropylene
(``BOPP'') or to an exterior ply of paper that is suitable for high
quality print graphics.\3\ Effective July 1, 2007, laminated woven
sacks are classifiable under Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United
States (``HTSUS'') subheadings 6305.33.0050 and 6305.33.0080. Laminated
woven sacks were previously classifiable under HTSUS subheading
6305.33.0020.\4\ The HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and
customs purposes only; the written product description of the scope of
the orders is dispositive.
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\2\ See Orders.
\3\ See ``Decision Memorandum for Final Determination of
Circumvention of the Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Orders:
Laminated Woven Sacks from the People's Republic of China,'' from
Christian Marsh, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and
Countervailing Duty Operations, to Paul Piquado, Assistant Secretary
for Import Administration, (``Final Decision Memo''), dated
concurrently with this final determination for a complete
description of the Scope of the Order.
\4\ Additional HTSUS considerations apply. See Final Decision
Memo.
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Scope of the Anti-Circumvention Inquiry
The merchandise subject to the anti-circumvention inquiry is
laminated woven sacks produced with two ink colors printed in register
and a screening process (``screening-process sacks''). Petitioners
allege that PRC producers of screening-process sacks have adapted the
screening process to create graphics that appear to have three or more
distinct colors visible, although, they are produced using only two
inks and a screen. Petitioners contend that such graphics would
normally be printed using three inks printed in register at three
different print stations, which would then make them subject
merchandise. However, by adapting the screening process, Petitioners
state that PRC producers of screening-process sacks are able to produce
similar graphics while only using two inks, thus, making merchandise
that is out of scope and not subject to antidumping and countervailing
duties.
The screening process at issue, as described by interested parties,
only uses two ink colors printed in register at two different print
stations. However, the artwork, by use of a screen, allows for
different shades of a single color to appear on the bag. Thus, when
printed, the screening-process sacks appear to have been printed with
more than two colored inks because more than two distinct colors are
visible on the finished product. As an example of the screening-process
sacks, the Department placed on the record of both proceedings five
laminated woven sacks imported by Shapiro: Two individual Manna Pro
Horse Feed sacks, two individual Red Head Deer Corn sacks, and one
Manna Pro Calf-Manna sack.\5\ Following the Negative Preliminary
Determination,\6\ an additional sack was placed on the record,\7\
referred to as the ``Manna Pro Complete Sack,'' as an example of a two-
ink, screened sack imported by Shapiro and addressed in the Post-
Preliminary Determination.
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\5\ See Memorandum to the File from Jamie Blair-Walker regarding
Anti-circumvention Inquiry of Laminated Woven Sacks from the
People's Republic of China on the subject of Meeting with Counsel
for the Laminated Woven Sacks Committee and its individual members,
Coating Excellence International, LLC and Polytex Fibers
Corporation, dated July 15, 2011.
\6\ See Laminated Woven Sacks from the People's Republic of
China: Negative Preliminary Determination of Circumvention of the
Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Orders, 76 FR 72161 (November
22, 2011) (``Negative Preliminary Determination'').
\7\ See Shapiro's supplemental questionnaire response entitled
``Laminated Woven Sacks from China; Printed Inks Anti-Circumvention
Inquiry: Submission of AMS Third Supplemental Response'' dated
January 27, 2012 (``January 27, 2012 Supplemental Response''), at 2-
3 and Attachment I.
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Methodology
The Department has conducted this proceeding in accordance with
section 781(d)(1) of the Act.\8\ For a full description of the
methodology underlying our conclusions, please see the Final Decision
Memo,\9\ dated concurrently with this final determination and hereby
adopted by this notice. The Final Decision Memo is a public document
and is on file electronically via Import Administration's Antidumping
and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (``IA
ACCESS''). Access to IA ACCESS is available to registered users at
http://iaaccess.trade.gov and is available to all parties in the
Central Records Unit, Room 7046 of the main Department of Commerce
building. In addition, a complete version of the Final Decision Memo
can be accessed directly on the Internet at http://www.trade.gov/ia/.
The signed Final Decision Memo and the electronic versions of the Final
Decision Memo are identical in content.
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\8\ See section 781(d)(1) of the Act.
\9\ See Final Decision Memo for a complete description of the
Scope of the Order.
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Final Determination
For the reasons discussed in the Final Decision Memo, we continue
to determine that the screening-process sacks are not later-developed
merchandise because they were commercially available at the time of the
initiation of the less-than-fair-value investigation on laminated woven
sacks from the PRC. Therefore, we also continue to determine that
screening-process sacks are not circumventing the Orders within the
meaning of section 781(d) of the Act.
This final determination is published in accordance with section
781(d) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.225.
Dated: February 14, 2013.
Paul Piquado,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
Appendix
Comment 1: Commercial Availability in the U.S. Market Prior To
Initiation of Investigations
Comment 2: The Shapiro Sacks and Complete Sack Are Commercially
Comparable Merchandise
[FR Doc. 2013-04148 Filed 2-22-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P