[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 3 (Thursday, January 4, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 516-522]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-28430]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-427-829, A-570-071]
Sodium Gluconate, Gluconic Acid, and Derivative Products From
France and the People's Republic of China: Initiation of Less-Than-
Fair-Value Investigations
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
DATES: Applicable December 20, 2017.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stephen Bailey at (202) 482-0193 and
Maliha Khan at (202) 482-0895 (France), Jeffrey Pedersen at (202) 482-
2769 and Celeste Chen at (202) 482-0890 (the People's Republic of China
(China)), AD/CVD Operations, Enforcement and Compliance, International
Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
The Petitions
On November 30, 2017, the U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce)
received antidumping duty (AD) Petitions concerning imports of sodium
gluconate, gluconic acid, and derivative products (GNA products) from
France and China, filed in proper form on behalf of PMP Fermentation
Products, Inc. (PMP, the petitioner).\1\ The AD Petitions were
accompanied by a countervailing duty (CVD) petition concerning imports
of GNA products
[[Page 517]]
from China. The petitioner is a domestic producer of GNA products.\2\
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\1\ See Petitioner's letter, ``Petition for Antidumping and
Countervailing Duties: Sodium Gluconate, Gluconic Acid, and
Derivative Products from the People's Republic of China and
France,'' dated November 30, 2017 (the Petitions).
\2\ See Volume I of the Petitions, at 2.
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On December 5, 2017, Commerce requested supplemental information
pertaining to certain areas of the Petitions.\3\ The petitioner filed
responses to these requests on December 7, 2017.\4\ On December 15,
2017, the petitioner submitted certain revisions to the scope.\5\
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\3\ See Commerce's Letters, ``Petitions for the Imposition of
Antidumping Duties on Imports of Sodium Gluconate, Gluconic Acid,
and Derivative Products from France and the People's Republic of
China and Countervailing Duties on Imports of Sodium Gluconate,
Gluconic Acid, and Derivative Products from the People's Republic of
China: Supplemental Questions,'' (General Issues Supplemental
Questionnaire); ``Petition for the Imposition of Antidumping Duties
on Imports of Sodium Gluconate, Gluconic Acid and Derivative
Products from France: Supplemental Questions;'' and ``Petition for
the Imposition of Antidumping Duties on Imports of Sodium Gluconate,
Gluconic Acid and Derivative Products from the People's Republic of
China: Supplemental Questions.'' All three of these documents are
dated December 5, 2017.
\4\ See Petitioner's Letters, ``Antidumping Duty Investigation
of Sodium Gluconate, Gluconic Acid and Derivative Products from the
People's Republic of China: PMP's Response to the Department's
Supplemental Questions on the Petition'' (General Issues and China
AD Supplement) and ``Antidumping Duty Investigation of Sodium
Gluconate, Gluconic Acid and Derivative Products from France: PMP's
Response to the Department's Supplemental Questions on the
Petition'' (General Issues and France AD Supplement). Both of these
documents are dated December 7, 2017.
\5\ See Memorandum, ``Petitions for the Imposition of
Antidumping Duties on Imports of Sodium Gluconate, Gluconic Acid,
and Derivative Products from France and the People's Republic of
China and Countervailing Duties on Imports of Sodium Gluconate,
Gluconic Acid, and Derivative Products from the People's Republic of
China: Telephone Conversation with the Petitioner,'' dated December
14, 2017; see also Petitioner's Letter, ``Sodium Gluconate, Gluconic
Acid, and Derivative Products from the People's Republic of China
and France: Petitioner's Amendment to Volume I of Antidumping and
Countervailing Duty Petition,'' dated December 15, 2017 (Revised
Scope).
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In accordance with section 732(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as
amended (the Act), the petitioner alleges that imports of GNA products
from France and China are being, or are likely to be, sold in the
United States at less than fair value within the meaning of section 731
of the Act, and that such imports are materially injuring, or
threatening material injury to, the domestic industry producing GNA
products in the United States. Consistent with section 732(b)(1) of the
Act, the Petitions are accompanied by information reasonably available
to the petitioner supporting their allegations.
Commerce finds that the petitioner filed the Petitions on behalf of
the domestic industry because the petitioner is an interested party as
defined in section 771(9)(C) of the Act. Commerce also finds that the
petitioner demonstrated sufficient industry support with respect to the
initiation of the AD investigations that the petitioner is
requesting.\6\
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\6\ See the ``Determination of Industry Support for the
Petitions'' section, infra.
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Periods of Investigation
Because the Petitions were filed on November 30, 2017, pursuant to
19 CFR 351.204(b)(1), the period of investigation (POI) for the France
investigation is October 1, 2016 through September 30, 2017. Because
China is a non-market economy (NME) country, pursuant to 19 CFR
351.204(b)(1), the POI for the China investigation is April 1, 2017
through September 30, 2017.
Scope of the Investigations
The products covered by these investigations are GNA products from
France and China. For a full description of the scope of these
investigations, see the Appendix to this notice.
Scope Comments
During our review of the Petitions, Commerce issued questions to,
and received responses from, the petitioner pertaining to the proposed
scope to ensure that the scope language in the Petitions is an accurate
reflection of the products for which the domestic industry is seeking
relief.\7\ As a result of these exchanges, the scope of the Petitions
was modified to clarify the description of merchandise covered by the
Petitions. The description of the merchandise covered by this
initiation, as described in the Appendix to this notice, reflects these
clarifications.
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\7\ See General Issues Supplemental Questionnaire, at 3-4; see
also General Issues and China AD Supplement and General Issues and
France AD Supplement.
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As discussed in the preamble to Commerce's regulations, we are
setting aside a period for interested parties to raise issues regarding
product coverage (scope).\8\ Commerce will consider all comments
received from interested parties and, if necessary, will consult with
interested parties prior to the issuance of the preliminary
determinations. If scope comments include factual information,\9\ all
such factual information should be limited to public information. To
facilitate preparation of its questionnaires, Commerce requests that
all interested parties submit such comments by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time
(ET) on January 9, 2018, which is 20 calendar days from the signature
date of this notice. Any rebuttal comments, which may include factual
information, must be filed by 5:00 p.m. ET on January 19, 2018, which
is 10 calendar days from the initial comments deadline.\10\
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\8\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule,
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997).
\9\ See 19 CFR 351.102(b)(21) (defining ``factual
information'').
\10\ See 19 CFR 351.303(b).
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Commerce requests that any factual information the parties consider
relevant to the scope of the investigations be submitted during this
time period. However, if a party subsequently finds that additional
factual information pertaining to the scope of the investigations may
be relevant, the party may contact Commerce and request permission to
submit the additional information. All such comments must be filed on
the records of each of the concurrent AD and CVD investigations.
Filing Requirements
All submissions to Commerce must be filed electronically using
Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping Duty and Countervailing Duty
Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS).\11\ An electronically
filed document must be received successfully in its entirety by the
time and date it is due. Documents exempted from the electronic
submission requirements must be filed manually (i.e., in paper form)
with Enforcement and Compliance's APO/Dockets Unit, Room 18022, U.S.
Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC
20230, and stamped with the date and time of receipt by the applicable
deadlines.
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\11\ See Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings:
Electronic Filing Procedures; Administrative Protective Order
Procedures, 76 FR 39263 (July 6, 2011); see also Enforcement and
Compliance; Change of Electronic Filing System Name, 79 FR 69046
(November 20, 2014) for details of Commerce's electronic filing
requirements, effective August 5, 2011. Information on help using
ACCESS can be found at https://access.trade.gov/help.aspx and a
handbook can be found at https://access.trade.gov/help/Handbook%20on%20Electronic%20Filling%20Procedures.pdf.
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Comments on Product Characteristics for AD Questionnaires
Commerce will provide interested parties an opportunity to comment
on the appropriate physical characteristics of GNA products to be
reported in response to Commerce's AD questionnaires. This information
will be used to identify the key physical characteristics of the
merchandise under consideration in order to report the relevant costs
of production accurately as well as to develop appropriate product-
comparison criteria.
Interested parties may provide any information or comments that
they feel are relevant to the development of an
[[Page 518]]
accurate list of physical characteristics. Specifically, they may
provide comments as to which characteristics are appropriate to use as:
(1) General product characteristics, and (2) product-comparison
criteria. We note that it is not always appropriate to use all product
characteristics as product-comparison criteria. We base product-
comparison criteria on meaningful commercial differences among
products. In other words, although there may be some physical product
characteristics utilized by manufacturers to describe GNA products, it
may be that only a select few product characteristics take into account
commercially meaningful physical characteristics. In addition,
interested parties may comment on the order in which the physical
characteristics should be used in matching products. Generally,
Commerce attempts to list the most important physical characteristics
first and the least important characteristics last.
In order to consider the suggestions of interested parties in
developing and issuing the AD questionnaires, all product
characteristics comments must be filed by 5:00 p.m. ET on January 9,
2018. Any rebuttal comments must be filed by 5:00 p.m. ET on January
19, 2018. All comments and submissions to Commerce must be filed
electronically using ACCESS, as explained above, on the records of the
France and China less-than-fair-value investigations.
Determination of Industry Support for the Petitions
Section 732(b)(1) of the Act requires that a petition be filed on
behalf of the domestic industry. Section 732(c)(4)(A) of the Act
provides that a petition meets this requirement if the domestic
producers or workers who support the petition account for: (i) At least
25 percent of the total production of the domestic like product; and
(ii) more than 50 percent of the production of the domestic like
product produced by that portion of the industry expressing support
for, or opposition to, the petition. Moreover, section 732(c)(4)(D) of
the Act provides that, if the petition does not establish support of
domestic producers or workers accounting for more than 50 percent of
the total production of the domestic like product, Commerce shall: (i)
Poll the industry or rely on other information in order to determine if
there is support for the petition, as required by subparagraph (A); or
(ii) determine industry support using a statistically valid sampling
method to poll the ``industry.''
Section 771(4)(A) of the Act defines the ``industry'' as the
producers as a whole of a domestic like product. Thus, to determine
whether a petition has the requisite industry support, the statute
directs Commerce to look to producers and workers who produce the
domestic like product. The International Trade Commission (ITC), which
is responsible for determining whether ``the domestic industry'' has
been injured, must also determine what constitutes a domestic like
product in order to define the industry. While both Commerce and the
ITC must apply the same statutory definition regarding the domestic
like product,\12\ they do so for different purposes and pursuant to a
separate and distinct authority. In addition, Commerce's determination
is subject to limitations of time and information. Although this may
result in different definitions of the like product, such differences
do not render the decision of either agency contrary to law.\13\
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\12\ See section 771(10) of the Act.
\13\ See USEC, Inc. v. United States, 132 F. Supp. 2d 1, 8 (CIT
2001) (citing Algoma Steel Corp., Ltd. v. United States, 688 F.
Supp. 639, 644 (CIT 1988), aff'd 865 F.2d 240 (Fed. Cir. 1989)).
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Section 771(10) of the Act defines the domestic like product as ``a
product which is like, or in the absence of like, most similar in
characteristics and uses with, the article subject to an investigation
under this title.'' Thus, the reference point from which the domestic
like product analysis begins is ``the article subject to an
investigation'' (i.e., the class or kind of merchandise to be
investigated, which normally will be the scope as defined in the
Petitions).
With regard to the domestic like product, the petitioner does not
offer a definition of the domestic like product distinct from the scope
of the investigations. Based on our analysis of the information
submitted on the record, we have determined that GNA products, as
defined in the scope, constitute a single domestic like product and we
have analyzed industry support in terms of that domestic like
product.\14\
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\14\ For a discussion of the domestic like product analysis, see
Antidumping Duty Investigation Initiation Checklist: Sodium
Gluconate, Gluconic Acid, and Derivative Products from the People's
Republic of China (China AD Initiation Checklist), at Attachment II,
Analysis of Industry Support for the Antidumping and Countervailing
Duty Petitions Covering Sodium Gluconate, Gluconic Acid, and
Derivative Products from the People's Republic of China and France
(Attachment II); and Antidumping Duty Investigation Initiation
Checklist: Sodium Gluconate, Gluconic Acid, and Derivative Products
from France (France AD Initiation Checklist), at Attachment II.
These checklists are dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by,
this notice and on file electronically via ACCESS. Access to
documents filed via ACCESS is also available in the Central Records
Unit, Room B8024 of the main Department of Commerce building.
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In determining whether the petitioner has standing under section
732(c)(4)(A) of the Act, we considered the industry support data
contained in the Petitions with reference to the domestic like product
as defined in the ``Scope of the Investigations,'' in the Appendix to
this notice. To establish industry support, the petitioner provided its
own production of the domestic like product in 2016.\15\ The petitioner
states that there are no other known producers of GNA products in the
United States; therefore, the Petitions are supported by 100 percent of
the U.S. industry.\16\
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\15\ See Volume I of the Petitions, at 3 and Exhibits I-1A and
I-1B.
\16\ Id. at 3 and Exhibits I-1A and I-1B; see also General
Issues and China AD Supplement, at 7; see also General Issues and
France AD Supplement, at 7.
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Our review of the data provided in the Petitions, the supplemental
responses, and other information readily available to Commerce
indicates that the petitioner has established industry support for the
Petitions.\17\ First, the Petitions established support from domestic
producers (or workers) accounting for more than 50 percent of the total
production of the domestic like product and, as such, Commerce is not
required to take further action in order to evaluate industry support
(e.g., polling).\18\ Second, the domestic producers (or workers) have
met the statutory criteria for industry support under section
732(c)(4)(A)(i) of the Act because the domestic producers (or workers)
who support the Petitions account for at least 25 percent of the total
production of the domestic like product.\19\ Finally, the domestic
producers (or workers) have met the statutory criteria for industry
support under section 732(c)(4)(A)(ii) of the Act because the domestic
producers (or workers) who support the Petitions account for more than
50 percent of the production of the domestic like product produced by
that portion of the industry expressing support for, or opposition to,
the Petitions.\20\ Accordingly, Commerce determines that the Petitions
were filed on behalf of the domestic industry within the meaning of
section 732(b)(1) of the Act.
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\17\ See China AD Initiation Checklist and France AD Initiation
Checklist, at Attachment II.
\18\ See section 732(c)(4)(D) of the Act; see also China AD
Initiation Checklist and France AD Initiation Checklist, at
Attachment II.
\19\ See China AD Initiation Checklist and France AD Initiation
Checklist, at Attachment II.
\20\ Id.
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Commerce finds that the petitioner filed the Petitions on behalf of
the domestic industry because it is an interested party as defined in
section 771(9)(C) of the Act and it has demonstrated sufficient
industry support with respect to the AD
[[Page 519]]
investigations that it is requesting that Commerce initiate.\21\
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\21\ Id.
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Allegations and Evidence of Material Injury and Causation
The petitioner alleges that the U.S. industry producing the
domestic like product is being materially injured, or is threatened
with material injury, by reason of the imports of the subject
merchandise sold at less than normal value (NV). In addition, the
petitioner alleges that subject imports exceed the negligibility
threshold provided for under section 771(24)(A) of the Act.\22\
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\22\ See Volume I of the Petitions, at 16 and Exhibit I-9; see
also General Issues and China AD Supplement, at 7; and General
Issues and France AD Supplement, at 7.
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The petitioner contends that the industry's injured condition is
illustrated by a significant volume of subject imports, reduced market
share, underselling and price depression or suppression, lost sales and
revenues, and a negative impact on financial performance.\23\ We have
assessed the allegations and supporting evidence regarding material
injury, threat of material injury, and causation, and we have
determined that these allegations are properly supported by adequate
evidence, and meet the statutory requirements for initiation.\24\
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\23\ Id. at 13, 16-32 and Exhibits I-4 and I-9 through I-22.
\24\ See China AD Initiation Checklist, at Attachment III,
Analysis of Allegations and Evidence of Material Injury and
Causation for the Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Petitions
Covering Sodium Gluconate, Gluconic Acid, and Derivative Products
from the People's Republic of China and France (Attachment III); see
also France AD Initiation Checklist, at Attachment III.
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Allegations of Sales at Less Than Fair Value
The following is a description of the allegations of sales at less
than fair value upon which Commerce based its decision to initiate AD
investigations of imports of GNA products from France and China. The
sources of data for the deductions and adjustments relating to U.S.
price and NV are discussed in greater detail in the country-specific
initiation checklists.
Export Price
For both France and China, the petitioner based its calculation of
export price (EP) on U.S. imports of sodium gluconate under the
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) subheading
2918.16.5010 between October 2016 and September 2017 for France and
April 2017 and September 2017 for China.\25\ The petitioner made
deductions from EP for foreign inland freight and foreign brokerage and
handling expenses.\26\
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\25\ See France AD Initiation Checklist and China AD Initiation
Checklist.
\26\ Id.
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Normal Value
For France, the petitioner was unable to obtain reliable
information relating to the prices charged for GNA products in France
or in any third country market.\27\ Because home market and third
country prices were not reasonably available, the petitioner calculated
NV based on constructed value (CV). For further discussion of CV, see
the section ``Normal Value Based on Constructed Value'' below.\28\
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\27\ See France AD Initiation Checklist.
\28\ In accordance with section 505(a) of the Trade Preferences
Extension Act of 2015, amending section 773(b)(2) of the Act, for
this investigation, Commerce will request information necessary to
calculate the CV and cost of production (COP) to determine whether
there are reasonable grounds to believe or suspect that sales of the
foreign like product have been made at prices that represent less
than the COP of the product. Commerce no longer requires a COP
allegation to conduct this analysis.
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With respect to China, Commerce considers China to be a non-market
economy (NME) country.\29\ In accordance with section 771(18)(C)(i) of
the Act, any determination that a foreign country is an NME country
shall remain in effect until revoked by Commerce. Therefore, we
continue to treat China as an NME country for purposes of the
initiation of this investigation. Accordingly, NV in China is
appropriately based on factors of production (FOPs) valued in a
surrogate market economy country, in accordance with section 773(c) of
the Act.\30\ In the course of this investigation, all parties, and the
public, will have the opportunity to provide relevant information
related to the granting of separate rates to individual exporters.
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\29\ See Antidumping Duty Investigation of Certain Aluminum Foil
from the People's Republic of China: Affirmative Preliminary
Determination of Sales at Less-Than-Fair Value and Postponement of
Final Determination, 82 FR 50858, 50861 (November 2, 2017), and
accompanying decision memorandum, China's Status as a Non-Market
Economy.
\30\ See China AD Initiation Checklist.
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The petitioner claims that Thailand is an appropriate surrogate
country for China because it is a market economy country that is at a
level of economic development comparable to that of China; it is a
significant producer of comparable merchandise; and public information
from Thailand is available to value all material input factors except
for the inputs of liquid glucose and sodium hydroxide.\31\ The
petitioner stated that due to what it characterized as high values in
the Thai import data for glucose and sodium hydroxide, it instead
relied on data for Brazil for these two inputs.\32\ Brazil was on the
list of potential surrogate countries placed on the record by the
petitioner, and the petitioner stated that Brazil had the largest
quantity of imports of these two inputs.\33\ Based on the information
provided by the petitioner, we determine that it is appropriate to use
Thailand as a surrogate country, but rely on the Brazil import data for
the glucose and sodium hydroxide inputs, for initiation purposes.
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\31\ See Volume II of the Petitions, at 2-3 and Exhibit II-2.
\32\ See Volume II of the Petitions, at 5.
\33\ See Volume II of the Petitions, at 2-6 and Exhibit II-2.
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Interested parties will have the opportunity to submit comments
regarding surrogate country selection and, pursuant to 19 CFR
351.301(c)(3)(i), will be provided an opportunity to submit publicly
available information to value FOPs within 30 days before the scheduled
date of the preliminary determination.
Factors of Production
Because information regarding the volume of inputs consumed by
China producers/exporters is not available, the petitioner relied on
the production experience of its GNA products production facility in
Peoria, Illinois as an estimate of Chinese manufacturers' FOPs.\34\ The
petitioner valued the estimated FOPs using surrogate values from
Thailand for China, except for two inputs as noted above.\35\ The
petitioner used the average POI exchange rate to convert the data to
U.S. dollars.\36\
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\34\ See Volume II of the Petitions at 4 and Volume IV of the
Petitions at 4.
\35\ See General Issues and China AD Supplement, at Revised
Exhibit II-13.
\36\ See General Issues and China AD Supplement, at Revised
Exhibit II-22.
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Normal Value Based on Constructed Value
As noted above, the petitioner was unable to obtain reliable
information relating to the prices charged for GNA products in France
or in any third country market; accordingly, the petitioner based NV on
CV. Pursuant to section 773(e) of the Act, CV consists of the cost of
manufacturing (COM), selling, general, and administrative (SG&A)
expenses, financial expenses, packing expenses, and profit.\37\ For
France, the petitioner calculated the COM based on its own input
factors of production and usage rates for raw materials, labor, energy,
packing, and a
[[Page 520]]
by-product offset.\38\ The input factors of production were valued
using publicly available data on costs specific to France, during the
proposed POI.\39\ Specifically, the prices for raw material and packing
inputs were based on publicly available import data for France.\40\
Labor and energy costs were valued using publicly available sources for
France.\41\ The petitioner calculated factory overhead, SG&A, and
profit for France based on the average ratios found in the experience
of a French producer of chemical products.\42\
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\37\ See France AD Initiation Checklist.
\38\ See General Issues and France AD Supplement, at Revised
Exhibit IV-10.
\39\ Id.
\40\ Id.
\41\ Id.
\42\ Id.
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Fair Value Comparisons
Based on the data provided by the petitioner, there is reason to
believe that imports of GNA products from France and China are being,
or are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value.
Based on comparisons of EP to NV in accordance with sections 772 and
773 of the Act, the estimated dumping margin for GNA products for each
of the countries covered by this initiation are as follows: (1)
France--76.95 percent; \43\ and (2) China--213.15 percent.\44\
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\43\ See France AD Initiation Checklist.
\44\ See China AD Initiation Checklist.
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Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations
Based upon the examination of the AD Petitions, we find that the
Petitions meet the requirements of section 732 of the Act. Therefore,
we are initiating AD investigations to determine whether imports of GNA
products from France and China are being, or are likely to be, sold in
the United States at less than fair value. In accordance with section
733(b)(1)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(b)(1), unless postponed, we
will make our preliminary determinations no later than 140 days after
the date of this initiation.
Under the Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015, numerous
amendments to the AD and CVD laws were made.\45\ The 2015 law does not
specify dates of application for those amendments. On August 6, 2015,
Commerce published an interpretative rule, in which it announced the
applicability dates for each amendment to the Act, except for
amendments contained in section 771(7) of the Act, which relate to
determinations of material injury by the ITC.\46\ The amendments to
sections 771(15), 773, 776, and 782 of the Act are applicable to all
determinations made on or after August 6, 2015, and, therefore, apply
to these AD investigations.\47\
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\45\ See Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015, Public Law
114-27, 129 Stat. 362 (2015).
\46\ See Dates of Application of Amendments to the Antidumping
and Countervailing Duty Laws Made by the Trade Preferences Extension
Act of 2015, 80 FR 46793 (August 6, 2015).
\47\ Id. at 46794-95. The 2015 amendments may be found at
https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/1295/text/pl.
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Respondent Selection
With respect to France, although Commerce normally relies on import
data from Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to determine whether to
select a limited number of producers/exporters for individual
examination in AD investigations, the petitioner identified only one
company in France, Jungbunzlauer, S.A., as a producer/exporter of GNA
products.\48\ The petitioner relied on information from a subscription
database of shipment data and additional research of publicly-available
sources as support for its claim that there is only one producer/
exporter of GNA products in France.\49\ We currently know of no
additional producers/exporters of GNA products from France.
Accordingly, Commerce intends to examine the sole French producer/
exporter identified in the Petition for the investigation. Parties
wishing to comment on respondent selection for France must do so within
five days of the publication of this notice in the Federal Register.
Any such comments must be submitted no later than 5:00 p.m. ET on the
due date, and must be filed electronically via ACCESS.
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\48\ See Volume I of the Petitions, at Exhibit I-5B.
\49\ Id.; see also Volume IV of the Petitions, at 1.
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With respect to China, the petitioner named 82 producers/exporters
as accounting for the majority of exports of GNA products to the United
States from China.\50\ In accordance with our standard practice for
respondent selection in AD cases involving NME countries, we intend to
issue quantity and value (Q&V) questionnaires to producers/exporters of
merchandise subject to the investigation and, if necessary, base
respondent selection on the responses received. For this investigation,
Commerce will request Q&V information from known Chinese exporters and
producers identified, with complete contact information, in the
Petition. In addition, Commerce will post the Q&V questionnaire along
with filing instructions on the Enforcement and Compliance website at
http://www.trade.gov/enforcement/news.asp.
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\50\ See General Issues and China AD Supplement, at Revised
Exhibit I-5A.
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Producers/exporters of GNA products from China that do not receive
Q&V questionnaires by mail may still submit a response to the Q&V
questionnaire and can obtain a copy of the Q&V questionnaire from
Enforcement & Compliance's website. The Q&V response must be submitted
by the relevant Chinese exporters/producers no later than 5:00 p.m. ET
on January 4, 2018. All Q&V responses must be filed electronically via
ACCESS.
Separate Rates
In order to obtain separate-rate status in an NME investigation,
exporters and producers must submit a separate-rate application.\51\
The specific requirements for submitting a separate-rate application in
China investigation are outlined in detail in the application itself,
which is available on Commerce's website at http://enforcement.trade.gov/nme/nme-sep-rate.html. The separate-rate
application will be due 30 days after publication of this initiation
notice.\52\ Exporters and producers who submit a separate-rate
application and have been selected as mandatory respondents will be
eligible for consideration for separate-rate status only if they
respond to all parts of Commerce's AD questionnaire as mandatory
respondents. Commerce requires that companies from China submit a
response to both the Q&V questionnaire and the separate-rate
application by the respective deadlines in order to receive
consideration for separate-rate status. Companies not filing a timely
Q&V response will not receive separate-rate consideration.
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\51\ See Policy Bulletin 05.1: Separate-Rates Practice and
Application of Combination Rates in Antidumping Investigation
involving Non-Market Economy Countries (April 5, 2005), available at
http://enforcement.trade.gov/policy/bull05-1.pdf (Policy Bulletin
05.1).
\52\ Although in past investigations this deadline was 60 days,
consistent with 19 CFR 351.301(a), which states that ``the Secretary
may request any person to submit factual information at any time
during a proceeding,'' this deadline is now 30 days.
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Use of Combination Rates
Commerce will calculate combination rates for certain respondents
that are eligible for a separate rate in an NME investigation. The
Separate Rates and Combination Rates Bulletin states:
{w{time} hile continuing the practice of assigning separate
rates only to exporters, all separate rates that the Department will
now assign in its NME Investigation will be specific to those
producers that supplied the exporter during the period of
investigation. Note, however, that one rate is calculated for the
exporter and all of the producers which
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supplied subject merchandise to it during the period of
investigation. This practice applies both to mandatory respondents
receiving an individually calculated separate rate as well as the
pool of non-investigated firms receiving the weighted-average of the
individually calculated rates. This practice is referred to as the
application of ``combination rates'' because such rates apply to
specific combinations of exporters and one or more producers. The
cash-deposit rate assigned to an exporter will apply only to
merchandise both exported by the firm in question and produced by a
firm that supplied the exporter during the period of
investigation.\53\
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\53\ See Policy Bulletin 05.1 at 6 (emphasis added).
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Distribution of Copies of the Petitions
In accordance with section 732(b)(3)(A)(i) of the Act and 19 CFR
351.202(f), copies of the public version of the Petitions have been
provided to the governments of France and China via ACCESS. To the
extent practicable, we will attempt to provide a copy of the public
version of the Petitions to each exporter named in the Petitions, as
provided under 19 CFR 351.203(c)(2).
ITC Notification
We will notify the ITC of our initiation, as required by section
732(d) of the Act.
Preliminary Determinations by the ITC
The ITC will preliminarily determine, within 45 days after the date
on which the Petitions were filed, whether there is a reasonable
indication that imports of GNA products from France and/or China are
materially injuring or threatening material injury to a U.S. industry.
A negative ITC determination for any country will result in the
investigation being terminated with respect to that country.\54\
Otherwise, the investigations will proceed according to statutory and
regulatory time limits.
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\54\ Id.
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Submission of Factual Information
Factual information is defined in 19 CFR 351.102(b)(21) as: (i)
Evidence submitted in response to questionnaires; (ii) evidence
submitted in support of allegations; (iii) publicly available
information to value factors under 19 CFR 351.408(c) or to measure the
adequacy of remuneration under 19 CFR 351.511(a)(2); (iv) evidence
placed on the record by Commerce; and (v) evidence other than factual
information described in (i)-(iv). 19 CFR 351.301(b) requires any
party, when submitting factual information, to specify under which
subsection of 19 CFR 351.102(b)(21) the information is being submitted
\55\ and, if the information is submitted to rebut, clarify, or correct
factual information already on the record, to provide an explanation
identifying the information already on the record that the factual
information seeks to rebut, clarify, or correct.\56\ Time limits for
the submission of factual information are addressed in 19 CFR 351.301,
which provides specific time limits based on the type of factual
information being submitted. Interested parties should review the
regulations prior to submitting factual information in these
investigations.
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\55\ See 19 CFR 351.301(b).
\56\ See 19 CFR 351.301(b)(2).
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Extensions of Time Limits
Parties may request an extension of time limits before the
expiration of a time limit established under 19 CFR 351.301, or as
otherwise specified by the Secretary. In general, an extension request
will be considered untimely if it is filed after the expiration of the
time limit established under 19 CFR 351.301. For submissions that are
due from multiple parties simultaneously, an extension request will be
considered untimely if it is filed after 10:00 a.m. ET on the due date.
Under certain circumstances, we may elect to specify a different time
limit by which extension requests will be considered untimely for
submissions which are due from multiple parties simultaneously. In such
a case, we will inform parties in the letter or memorandum setting
forth the deadline (including a specified time) by which extension
requests must be filed to be considered timely. An extension request
must be made in a separate, stand-alone submission; under limited
circumstances we will grant untimely-filed requests for the extension
of time limits. Parties should review Extension of Time Limits; Final
Rule, 78 FR 57790 (September 20, 2013), available at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2013-09-20/html/2013-22853.htm, prior to
submitting factual information in these investigations.
Certification Requirements
Any party submitting factual information in an AD or CVD proceeding
must certify to the accuracy and completeness of that information.\57\
Parties must use the certification formats provided in 19 CFR
351.303(g).\58\ Commerce intends to reject factual submissions if the
submitting party does not comply with the applicable revised
certification requirements.
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\57\ See section 782(b) of the Act.
\58\ See also Certification of Factual Information to Import
Administration During Antidumping and Countervailing Duty
Proceedings, 78 FR 42678 (July 17, 2013) (Final Rule). Answers to
frequently asked questions regarding the Final Rule are available at
http://enforcement.trade.gov/tlei/notices/factual_info_final_rule_FAQ_07172013.pdf.
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Notification to Interested Parties
Interested parties must submit applications for disclosure under
APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305. On January 22, 2008, Commerce
published Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings: Documents
Submission Procedures; APO Procedures, 73 FR 3634 (January 22, 2008).
Parties wishing to participate in these investigations should ensure
that they meet the requirements of these procedures (e.g., the filing
of letters of appearance as discussed at 19 CFR 351.103(d)).
This notice is issued and published pursuant to sections 732(c)(2)
and 777(i) of the Act, and 19 CFR 351.203(c).
Dated: December 20, 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
Scope of the Investigations
The scope of these investigations covers all grades of sodium
gluconate, gluconic acid, liquid gluconate, and glucono delta
lactone (GDL) (collectively GNA Products), regardless of physical
form (including, but not limited to substrates; solutions; dry
granular form or powders, regardless of particle size; or as a
slurry). The scope also includes GNA Products that have been blended
or are in solution with other product(s) where the resulting mix
contains 35 percent or more of sodium gluconate, gluconic acid,
liquid gluconate, and/or GDL by dry weight.
Sodium gluconate has a molecular formula of
NaC6H11O7. Sodium gluconate has a
Chemical Abstract Service (CAS) registry number of 527-07-1, and can
also be called ``sodium salt of gluconic acid'' and/or sodium 2, 3,
4, 5, 6 pentahydroxyhexanoate. Gluconic acid has a molecular formula
of C6H12O7. Gluconic acid has a CAS
registry number of 526-95-4, and can also be called 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
pentahydroxycaproic acid. Liquid gluconate is a blend consisting
only of gluconic acid and sodium gluconate in an aqueous solution.
Liquid gluconate has CAS registry numbers of 527-07-1, 526-95-4, and
7732-18-5, and can also be called 2, 3, 4, 5, 6-pentahydroxycaproic
acid-hexanoate. GDL has a molecular formula of
C6H10O6. GDL has a CAS registry
number of 90-80-2, and can also be called d-glucono-1,5-lactone.
The merchandise covered by the scope of these investigations is
currently classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United
States (HTSUS) under subheadings 2918.16.1000, 2918.16.5010, and
2932.20.5020. Merchandise covered by the scope may also enter under
HTSUS subheadings 2918.16.5050, 3824.99.2890, and 3824.99.9295.
Although the HTSUS subheadings and CAS registry numbers are
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provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written
description of the merchandise is dispositive.
[FR Doc. 2017-28430 Filed 1-3-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P