[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 111 (Monday, June 10, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34642-34644]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-13707]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-570-937]
Citric Acid and Certain Citrate Salts From the People's Republic
of China: Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative
Review; 2011-2012
AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (``the Department'') is conducting
an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on citric acid
and certain citrate salts (``citric acid'') from the People's Republic
of China (``PRC''). The period of review (``POR'') is May 1, 2011,
through April 30, 2012. We have preliminarily found that the
respondent, RZBC Imp. & Exp. Co., Ltd. (``RZBC I&E''), has not made
sales of subject merchandise at less than normal value (``NV''). If
these preliminary results are adopted in our final results of review,
we will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (``CBP'') to assess
antidumping duties on all appropriate entries of subject merchandise
during the POR. Interested parties are invited to comment on these
preliminary results. We will issue final results no later than 120 days
from the date of publication of this notice, pursuant to section
751(a)(3)(A) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (``the Act'').
DATES: Effective Date: June 10, 2013.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Krisha Hill or Drew Jackson, AD/CVD
Operations, Office 4, Import Administration, International Trade
Administration, Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW.,
Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-4037 or (202) 482-4406,
respectively.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Scope of the Order
The scope of the order includes the hydrous and anhydrous forms of
citric acid, the dihydrate and anhydrous forms of sodium citrate,
otherwise known as citric acid sodium salt, and the monohydrate and
monopotassium forms of potassium citrate.\1\ Sodium citrate also
includes both trisodium citrate and monosodium citrate, which are also
known as citric acid trisodium salt and citric acid monosodium salt,
respectively. Citric acid and sodium citrate are classifiable under
2918.14.0000 and 2918.15.1000 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the
United States (``HTSUS''), respectively. Potassium citrate and crude
calcium citrate are classifiable under 2918.15.5000 and 3824.90.9290 of
the HTSUS, respectively. Blends that include citric acid, sodium
citrate, and potassium citrate are classifiable under 3824.90.9290 of
the HTSUS. Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience
and customs purposes, the written description of the merchandise is
dispositive.\2\
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\1\ See ``Decision Memorandum for Preliminary Results of 2011-
2012 Antidumping Duty Administrative Review: Citric Acid and Certain
Citrate Salts 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, dated June 3, 2013 (``Preliminary Decision
Memorandum'') issued concurrently with this notice for a complete
description of the Scope of the Order.
\2\ See Citric Acid and Certain Citrate Salts from Canada and
the People's Republic of China: Antidumping Duty Orders, 74 FR 25703
(May 29, 2009).
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Preliminary Determination of No Shipments
Yixing Union Biochemical Ltd. (``Yixing Union'') reported it made
no shipments of subject merchandise to the United States during the
POR.\3\ On August 3, 2012, the Department requested that CBP report any
contrary information. CBP has not responded to the Department's inquiry
and the Department has not received any evidence that that Yixing Union
had any shipments to the United States of subject merchandise during
the POR. Based on Yixing Union's no shipments certification, and
because CBP had no findings of reviewable transactions, we
preliminarily determine that Yixing Union did not have any reviewable
transactions during the POR.
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\3\ See Letter from Yixing Union to the Department, regarding
``Antidumping Duty Administrative Review of Citric Acid and Certain
Citrate Salts from the People's Republic of China--No Shipments
Letter of Yixing Union Biochemical Co. Ltd.,'' dated July 13, 2012.
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In addition, the Department finds that consistent with its recently
announced refinement to its assessment practice in NME cases, it is
appropriate not to rescind the review in part in these circumstances
but, rather, to complete the review with respect to Yixing Union and
issue appropriate instructions to CBP based on the final results of the
review.\4\
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\4\ See Non-Market Economy Antidumping Proceedings: Assessment
of Antidumping Duties, 76 FR 65694 (October 24, 2011) (``Assessment
in NME Proceedings'') and the ``Assessment Rates'' section, below.
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Methodology
The Department has conducted this review in accordance with section
751(a)(1)(A) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (``the Act'').
Export prices have been calculated in accordance with section 772 of
the Act. Because the PRC is a non-market (``NME'') economy within the
meaning of section 771(18) of the Act, NV has been calculated in
accordance with section 773(c) of the Act. Specifically, RZBC I&E's
factors of production have been valued using surrogate value data from
Indonesia (where available), which is economically comparable to the
PRC and is a significant producer of comparable merchandise. To
determine the appropriate comparison method, the Department applied a
differential pricing analysis and has preliminarily determined to use
the average-to-average method in making comparisons of export price and
NV for RZBC I&E.
For a full description of the methodology underlying our
conclusions, please see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, hereby
adopted by this notice. The Preliminary Decision Memorandum is a public
document and is on file electronically via Import Administration's
Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service
System (``IA ACCESS''). IA ACCESS is available to registered users at
http://iaaccess.trade.gov. The Preliminary Decision Memorandum is also
available in the Central Records Unit, room 7046 of the main Department
of Commerce building. In addition, a complete version of the
Preliminary Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly on the
internet at http://www.trade.gov/ia/. The signed Preliminary Decision
Memorandum and the electronic versions of the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum are identical in content.
[[Page 34643]]
Preliminary Results of Review
The Department preliminarily determines that the following
weighted-average dumping margin exists:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Weighted
average
Exporter dumping
margin
(percent)
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RZBC Imp. & Exp. Co., Ltd................................... 0.00
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Disclosure and Public Comment
The Department will disclose calculations performed for these
preliminary results to the parties within five days of the date of
publication of this notice in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).
Interested parties may submit a case brief no later than 30 days after
the date of publication of these preliminary results of review.\5\
Rebuttal briefs may be filed no later than five days after case briefs
are filed and may only respond to arguments raised in the case
briefs.\6\ A table of contents, list of authorities used and an
executive summary of issues should accompany any briefs submitted to
the Department. This summary should be limited to five pages total,
including footnotes. Interested parties who wish to request a hearing,
or to participate if one is requested, must submit a written request to
the Assistant Secretary for Import Administration, U.S. Department of
Commerce, within 30 days after the date of publication of this
notice.\7\ Requests should contain the party's name, address, and
telephone number, the number of participants, 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, 14th
Street and Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230, at a time and
location to be determined.\8\ Parties should confirm by telephone the
date, time, and location of the hearing two days before the scheduled
date.
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\5\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c).
\6\ See 19 CFR 351.309(d).
\7\ See 19 CFR 351.310(c).
\8\ See 19 CFR 351.310(d).
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All submissions, with limited exceptions, must be filed
electronically using IA ACCESS. An electronically filed document must
be received successfully in its entirety by the Department's electronic
records system, IA ACCESS, by 5 p.m. Eastern Time (``ET'') on the due
date. Documents excepted from the electronic submission requirements
must be filed manually (i.e., in paper form) with the APO/Dockets Unit
in Room 1870 and stamped with the date and time of receipt by 5 p.m. ET
on the due date.\9\
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\9\ See Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings:
Electronic Filing Procedures; Administrative Protective Order
Procedures, 76 FR 39263 (July 6, 2011).
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The Department will issue the final results of this administrative
review, which will include the results of its analysis of issues raised
in any briefs, within 120 days of publication of these preliminary
results, pursuant to section 751(a)(3)(A) of the Act.
Deadline for Submission of Publicly Available Surrogate Value
Information
In accordance with 19 CFR 351.301(c)(3)(ii), the deadline for
submission of publicly available information to value factors of
production under 19 CFR 351.408(c) is 20 days after the date of
publication of the preliminary results. In accordance with 19 CFR
351.301(c)(1), if an interested party submits factual information less
than ten days before, on, or after (if the Department has extended the
deadline), the applicable deadline for submission of such factual
information, an interested party may submit factual information to
rebut, clarify, or correct the factual information no later than ten
days after such factual information is served on the interested party.
However, the Department generally will not accept in the rebuttal
submission additional or alternative surrogate value information not
previously on the record, if the deadline for submission of surrogate
value information has passed.\10\ Furthermore, the Department generally
will not accept business proprietary information in either the
surrogate value submissions or the rebuttals thereto, as the regulation
regarding the submission of surrogate values allows only for the
submission of publicly available information.\11\
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\10\ See, e.g., Glycine from the People's Republic of China:
Final Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review and Final
Rescission, in Part, 72 FR 58809 (October 17, 2007), and
accompanying Issues and Decision Memorandum at Comment 2.
\11\ See 19 CFR 351.301(c)(3).
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Assessment Rates
Upon issuance of the final results, the Department will determine,
and CBP shall assess, antidumping duties on all appropriate entries
covered by this review.\12\ The Department intends to issue assessment
instructions to CBP 15 days after the publication date of the final
results of this review. For any individually examined respondent whose
weighted-average dumping margin is above de minimis (i.e., less than
0.50 percent) in the final results of this review, we will calculate an
importer-specific assessment rate on the basis of the ratio of the
total amount of antidumping duties calculated for the importer's
examined sales and the total entered value of sales, in accordance with
19 CFR 351.212(b)(1).\13\ Where we calculate a margin by dividing the
total dumping margins for reviewed sales to that party by the total
sales quantity associated with those transactions, in this and future
reviews, we will direct CBP to assess importer-specific assessment
rates based on the resulting per-unit (i.e., per-kilogram) rates by the
weight in kilograms of each entry of the subject merchandise during the
POR. Where either the respondent's weighted-average dumping margin is
zero or de minimis, or an importer-specific assessment rate is zero or
de minimis, we will instruct CBP to liquidate the appropriate entries
without regard to antidumping duties. We intend to instruct CBP to
liquidate entries containing subject merchandise exported by the PRC-
wide entity at the PRC-wide rate we determine in the final results of
this review.
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\12\ See 19 CFR 351.212(b)(1).
\13\ In these preliminary results, the Department applied the
assessment rate calculation method adopted in Antidumping
Proceedings: Calculation of the Weighted-Average Dumping Margin and
Assessment Rate in Certain Antidumping Duty Proceedings; Final
Modification, 77 FR 8101 (February 14, 2012). In particular, the
Department compared monthly weighted-average export prices with
monthly weighted-average NVs and granted offsets for non-dumped
comparisons in the calculation of the weighted-average dumping
margin.
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The Department announced a refinement to its assessment practice in
NME antidumping duty cases. Pursuant to this refinement in practice,
for merchandise that was not reported in the U.S. sales databases
submitted by an exporter individually examined during this review, but
that entered under the case number of that exporter (i.e., at the
individually-examined exporter's cash deposit rate), the Department
will instruct CBP to liquidate such entries at the PRC-wide rate.
Additionally, pursuant to this refinement, if the Department determines
that an exporter under review had no shipments of the subject
merchandise, any suspended entries that entered under that exporter's
case number will be liquidated at the PRC-wide rate.\14\
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\14\ See Assessment in NME Proceedings, for a full discussion of
this practice.
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Cash Deposit Requirements
The following cash deposit requirements will be effective upon
publication of the final results of this administrative review for
shipments of
[[Page 34644]]
the subject merchandise from the PRC entered, or withdrawn from
warehouse, for consumption on or after the publication date, as
provided by sections 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act: (1) For RZBC I&E the cash
deposit rate will be its respective rate established in the final
results of this review, except if the rate is zero or de minimis no
cash deposit will be required; (2) for previously investigated or
reviewed PRC and non-PRC exporters not listed above that have separate
rates, the cash deposit rate will continue to be the exporter-specific
rate published for the most recent period; (3) for all PRC exporters of
subject merchandise which have not been found to be entitled to a
separate rate, the cash deposit rate will be that for the PRC-wide
entity; and (4) for all non-PRC exporters of subject merchandise which
have not received their own rate, the cash deposit rate will be the
rate applicable to the PRC exporter that supplied that non-PRC
exporter. These deposit requirements, when imposed, shall remain in
effect until further notice.
We have adjusted the preliminary results antidumping duty margin
for export subsidies because the Department found evidence of an export
subsidy in the companion countervailing duty proceeding. Additionally,
the Department has not adjusted the preliminary results antidumping
duty margin for estimated domestic subsidy pass-through because it has
concluded that concurrent application of NME antidumping and
countervailing duties do not necessarily and automatically result in
overlapping remedies.\15\
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\15\ See Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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Notification to Importers
This notice also serves as a preliminary reminder to importers of
their responsibility under 19 CFR 351.402(f)(2) to file a certificate
regarding the reimbursement of antidumping duties prior to liquidation
of the relevant entries during this review period. Failure to comply
with this requirement could result in the Department's presumption that
reimbursement of antidumping duties occurred and the subsequent
assessment of double antidumping duties.
We are issuing and publishing these results in accordance with
sections 751(a)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.213.
Dated: June 3, 2013.
Paul Piquado,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
Appendix--List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum
1. Background
2. Scope of the Order
3. Non-Market Economy Country
4. Separate Rate
5. Surrogate Country and Surrogate Value Data
6. Fair Value Comparisons
7. U.S. Price
8. Normal Value
9. Export Subsidy Adjustment
10. Section 777A(f) of the Act
11. Currency Conversion
[FR Doc. 2013-13707 Filed 6-7-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P