[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 229 (Wednesday, November 27, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70918-70920]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-28551]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-570-988]
Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value: Silica
Bricks and Shapes From the People's Republic of China
AGENCY: Enforcement & Compliance, formerly Import Administration,
International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce
DATES: Effective Date: November 27, 2013.
SUMMARY: On June 20, 2013, the Department of Commerce (``Department'')
published its preliminary determination of sales at less than fair
value (``LTFV'') in the antidumping duty investigation of silica bricks
and shapes from the People's Republic of China (``PRC'').\1\ The
Department invited interested parties to comment on the Preliminary
Determination. Based on the Department's analysis of the comments
received, the Department made changes to the Preliminary Determination.
The Department determines that silica bricks and shapes from the PRC
are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at LTFV, as
provided in section 735 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the
``Act''). The final weighted-average dumping margins for this
investigation are listed in the ``Final Determination'' section below.
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\1\ See Silica Bricks and Shapes from the People's Republic of
China: Preliminary Determination of Antidumping Duty Investigation
and Postponement of Final Determination, 78 FR 37203 (June 20, 2013)
(``Preliminary Determination'').
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jonathan Hill, AD/CVD Operations,
Office IV, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and
Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-
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3518.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Department published its Preliminary Determination on June 20,
2013.\2\ Between June 24, 2013 and July 1, 2013, the Department
conducted verification of the mandatory respondent Tianjin New Century
Refractories Co., Ltd.; Tianjin New World Import & Export Trading Co.,
Ltd.; and XinYi American Advanced Material Co., Ltd. (collectively,
``New Century Group'') \3\ and its unaffiliated producer, Dengfeng
Yuzhong Refractories Co. Ltd. (``Dengfeng Yuzhong'').\4\
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\2\ See Preliminary Determination.
\3\ In the Preliminary Determination, the Department determined
to treat these companies as a single entity and continues to do so.
See the memorandum from Rebecca Pandolph, International Trade
Analyst, AD/CVD Operations, Office 4 through Howard Smith, Program
Manager, AD/CVD Operations, Office 4 to Abdelali Elouaradia, Office
Director, AD/CVD Operations, Office 4, ``Silica Bricks and Shapes
from the People's Republic of China: Affiliation and Single Entity
Status,'' dated June 13, 2013.
\4\ See the ``Verification'' section below.
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On July 15, 2013, Utah Refractories Corporation (``Petitioner'')
requested that the Department reject as untimely the unsolicited
submission of new factual information filed on July 5, 2013 by New
Century Group.\5\ The Department did not reject this submission as it
was information requested by the Department during verification of New
Century Group and which the Department asked that New Century Group
submit to the record.
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\5\ See Letter from Petitioner to the Secretary of Commerce,
``Silica Bricks and Shapes from the People 's Republic of China
Request to Reject Untimely Additional Factual Information,'' dated
July 15, 2013.
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On July 30, 2013, New Century Group submitted surrogate value
comments. On August 12, 2013, Utah Refractories Corporation
(``Petitioner'') submitted rebuttal surrogate value comments.
On August 17, 2013 and August 19, 2013, the New Century Group and
Fedmet Resources Corporation, respectively, submitted case briefs. On
September 3, 2013, Petitioner submitted a rebuttal brief.
As explained in the memorandum from the Assistant Secretary for
Enforcement and Compliance, the Department exercised its discretion to
toll deadlines for the duration of the closure of the Federal
Government from October 1, through October 16, 2013.\6\ Therefore, all
deadlines in this proceeding have been extended by 16 days. If the new
deadline falls on a non-business day, in accordance with the
Department's practice, the deadline will become the next business day.
Thus, the revised deadline for the final determination in this
investigation is November 20, 2013.
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\6\ See Memorandum for the Record from Paul Piquado, Assistant
Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance, ``Deadlines Affected by
the Shutdown of the Federal Government'' (October 18, 2013).
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Period of Investigation
The period of investigation (``POI'') is April 1, 2012, through
September 30, 2012. This period corresponds to the two most recent
fiscal quarters prior to the month of the filing of the petition, which
was November 2012.\7\
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\7\ See 19 CFR 351.204(b)(1).
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Analysis of Comments Received
All issues raised in the case and rebuttal briefs by parties to
this investigation are addressed in the Issues and Decision
Memorandum.\8\ A list of the issues which the parties raised and to
which the Department responded in the Issues and Decision Memorandum is
attached to this notice as an Appendix. The Issues and Decision
Memorandum is a public document and is on file electronically via
Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping and Countervailing Duty
Centralized Electronic Service System (IA ACCESS). IA ACCESS is
available to registered users at http://iaaccess.trade.gov and it 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 Issues and Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly at
http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/. The signed Issues and Decision
Memorandum and the electronic versions of the Issues and Decision
Memorandum are identical in content.
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\8\ See Memorandum from Christian Marsh, Deputy Assistant
Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Operations, to
Paul Piquado, Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance,
``Issues and Decision Memorandum for the Final Determination of
Sales at Less-Than-Fair-Value: Silica Bricks and Shapes from the
People's Republic of China,'' dated concurrently with this notice
(``Issues and Decision Memorandum'').
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[[Page 70919]]
Changes Since the Preliminary Determination
Based on the Department's analysis of the comments received, the
Department made changes to the following elements of the antidumping
duty calculations since the Preliminary Determination:
Direct and Indirect labor hours
Iron Scale Consumption and Surrogate Value
Electricity Consumption
Freight Distances from Suppliers to Factory
Packing Material Consumption
Entered Value
Brokerage and Handling
Use of Partial Adverse Facts Available for Unreported U.S.
Sales
Value Added Tax Adjustment
For detailed information concerning all of the changes made, including
those listed above, see New Century Group's analysis and surrogate
value memoranda.\9\
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\9\ See Memorandum from Jonathan Hill, International Trade
Analyst, AD/CVD Operations, Office IV, to Howard Smith, Program
Manager, AD/CVD Operations, Office IV, ``Silica Bricks and Shapes
from the People's Republic of China: Analysis of the Final
Determination Margin Calculation for New Century Group,'' dated
November 20, 2013; see also memorandum from Jonathan Hill,
International Trade Analyst, AD/CVD Operations, Office IV, to Howard
Smith, Program Manager, AD/CVD Operations, Office IV, ``Final
Determination of the Antidumping Duty Investigation of Silica Bricks
and Shapes from the People's Republic of China: Factor Valuation
Memorandum,'' dated November 20, 2013.
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Scope of the Investigation
The products covered by the scope of this investigation are
refractory bricks and shapes, regardless of size, that contain at least
90 percent silica (SiO2) where at least 50 percent of the
silica content, by weight, is crystalline silica, regardless of other
materials contained in the bricks and shapes. Refractory refers to
nonmetallic materials having those chemical and physical properties
that make them applicable for structures, or as components of systems,
that are exposed to environments above 1000 degrees Fahrenheit (538
degrees Celsius). The products covered by the scope of this
investigation are currently classified under Harmonized Tariff Schedule
of the United States (``HTSUS'') numbers 6902.20.1020 and 6902.20.5020.
Because the definition of ``refractory'' in the HTSUS differs from that
in the scope of this investigation, products covered by the scope of
this investigation may also enter under HTSUS number 6909.19.5095.
Although the HTSUS numbers are provided for convenience and customs
purposes, the written description of the scope of this proceeding is
dispositive.
The scope of this investigation does not cover refractory bricks
and shapes, regardless of size, that are made, in part, from non-
crystalline silica (commonly referred to as fused silica) where the
silica content is less than 50 percent, by weight, crystalline silica.
Verification
As provided in section 782(i) of the Act, the Department verified
the information submitted by New Century Group for use in the final
determination. The Department used standard verification procedures,
including examination of relevant accounting and production records and
original source documents provided by New Century Group.
Surrogate Country
In the Preliminary Determination, the Department selected Ukraine
as the appropriate surrogate country to use in this investigation
pursuant to section 773(c)(4) of the Act based on the following: (1) it
is at a level of economic development similar to the PRC; (2) it is a
significant producer of comparable merchandise; and (3) we have
reliable data from Ukraine that we can use to value the factors of
production. No one commented on the selection of the surrogate country
and the Department continues to find that Ukraine is the appropriate
surrogate country for this final determination.
Use of Adverse Facts Available
We determined that New Century Group failed to report certain sales
and thus withheld necessary information within the meaning of section
776(a) of the Act. Moreover, New Century Group failed to act to the
best of its ability to comply with the Department's requests for
information within the meaning of section 776(b) of the Act regarding
unreported sales. We therefore applied adverse facts available
(``AFA'') to New Century Group's unreported sales, pursuant to section
776(b) of the Act. As partial AFA, we applied the highest transaction
specific margin calculated to the unreported sales.
Furthermore, because the PRC-wide entity did not provide the
Department with requested information, pursuant to section 776
(a)(2)(A) of the Act, the Department continues to find it appropriate
to base the PRC-wide rate on AFA. As was the case in the Preliminary
Determination, we are unable to corroborate the dumping margins in the
petition. Therefore, we have assigned the PRC-wide entity a dumping
margin equal to the highest transaction-specific dumping margin
calculated for the New Century Group.
Final Determination
The Department determines that the following weighted-average
dumping margins exist for the period April 1, 2012, through September
30, 2012.
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Weighted-
average
Exporter Producer dumping margin
(percent)
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Tianjin New Century Refractories Dengfeng Yuzhong 63.81
Co., Ltd.; Tianjin New World Refractories Co.
Import & Export Trading Co., Ltd.
Ltd.; and XinYi American Advanced
Material Co., Ltd.
PRC-wide Entity\*\................ .................... 73.10
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* The PRC-wide entity includes Shandong Daqiao Co., Ltd.
Disclosure
We intend to disclose to parties the calculations performed in this
proceeding within five days of the date of publication of this notice
in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).
Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation
In accordance with section 735(c)(1)(B) of the Act, the Department
will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (``CBP'') to continue
to suspend liquidation of all appropriate entries of silica bricks and
shapes from the PRC as described in the ``Scope of the Investigation''
section, which were entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for
consumption on or after June 20, 2013, the date of publication of the
[[Page 70920]]
Preliminary Determination in the Federal Register. Further, the
Department will instruct CBP to require a cash deposit equal to the
weighted-average amount by which the normal value exceeds U.S. price as
follows: (1) For the exporter/producer combination listed in the table
above, the cash deposit rate will be equal to the weighted-average
dumping margin which the Department determined in this final
determination; (2) for all combinations of PRC exporters/producers of
merchandise under consideration which have not received their own
separate rate above, the cash deposit rate will be equal to the
weighted-average dumping margin established for the PRC-wide entity;
and (3) for all non-PRC exporters of merchandise under consideration
which have not received their own separate rate above, the cash deposit
rate will be equal to the cash deposit rate applicable to the PRC
exporter/producer combination that supplied that non-PRC exporter.
These suspension-of-liquidation instructions will remain in effect
until further notice.
ITC Notification
In accordance with section 735(d) of the Act, we have notified the
International Trade Commission (``ITC'') of the final affirmative
determination of sales at LTFV. As the Department's final determination
is affirmative, in accordance with section 735(b)(2) of the Act, the
ITC will determine, within 45 days, whether the domestic industry in
the United States is materially injured, or threatened with material
injury, by reason of imports of subject merchandise, or sales (or the
likelihood of sales) for importation, of the subject merchandise. If
the ITC determines that such injury does exist, the Department will
issue an antidumping duty order directing CBP to assess, upon further
instruction by the Department, 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 APO
This notice also serves as a reminder to the parties subject to
administrative protective order (``APO'') of their responsibility
concerning the disposition of propriety information disclosed under APO
in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305. Timely written notification of
return or destruction of APO materials or conversion to judicial
protective order is hereby requested. Failure to comply with the
regulations and 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.
Dated: November 20, 2013.
Paul Piquado,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix
Issues
Comment 1: Verification Corrections
Comment 2: Scope Exclusion for Fused Silica and Silicon Carbide
Bricks and Shapes
Comment 3: Silica Sand Surrogate Value
Comment 4: Iron Scale Surrogate Value
Comment 5: Natural Gas Surrogate Value
Comment 6: Brokerage and Handling Surrogate Value
Comment 7: Facts Available for New Century Group's Unreported U.S.
Sales
Comment 8: Value Added Tax
[FR Doc. 2013-28551 Filed 11-26-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P