2018-27536. Certain Cut-to-Length Carbon-Quality Steel Plate Products From the Republic of Korea: Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review; 2017-2018

AGENCY:

Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.

SUMMARY:

The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines that producers and/or exporters subject to this administrative review made sales of subject merchandise at less than normal value. Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results of review.

DATES:

Applicable December 20, 2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Yang Jin Chun or Thomas Schauer, AD/CVD Operations, Office I, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone [phone] or [phone], respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

On April 16, 2018, Commerce initiated the administrative review of the antidumping duty order on certain cut-to-length carbon-quality steel plate products (CTL plate) from the Republic of Korea (Korea).^[1] The period of review is February 1, 2017, through January 31, 2018.

Scope of the Order

The products covered by the antidumping duty order are certain CTL plate. Imports of CTL plate are currently classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) under subheadings 7208.40.3030, 7208.40.3060, 7208.51.0030, 7208.51.0045, 7208.51.0060, 7208.52.0000, 7208.53.0000, 7208.90.0000, 7210.70.3000, 7210.90.9000, 7211.13.0000, 7211.14.0030, 7211.14.0045, 7211.90.0000, 7212.40.1000, 7212.40.5000, 7212.50.0000, 7225.40.3050, 7225.40.7000, 7225.50.6000, 7225.99.0090, 7226.91.5000, 7226.91.7000, 7226.91.8000, and 7226.99.0000. While the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description is dispositive. A full description of the scope of the order is contained in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.^[2]

Methodology

Commerce is conducting this review in accordance with section 751 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Export price and constructed export price are calculated in accordance with section 772 of the Act. Normal value is calculated in accordance with section 773 of the Act.

For a full description of the methodology underlying our conclusions, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. A list of the topics included in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is included in the Appendix to this notice. The Preliminary Decision Memorandum is a public document and is made available to the public via Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS). ACCESS is available to registered users at http://access.trade.gov and to all parties in Commerce's Central Records Unit, located at room B8024 of the main Commerce building. In addition, a complete version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum can be found at http://enforcement.trade.gov/​frn/​index.html.

Adverse Facts Available

Pursuant to section 776(a) of the Act, Commerce is preliminarily relying upon facts otherwise available to calculate certain expenses with respect to Hyundai Steel in this review because Hyundai Steel withheld necessary information that was requested by Commerce and failed to provide verifiable information. Further, Commerce preliminarily determines that Hyundai Steel failed to cooperate by not acting to the best of its ability to comply with requests for information and, thus, Commerce is applying adverse facts available (AFA) to Hyundai Steel, in accordance with section 776(b) of the Act. For a full description of the methodology underlying our conclusions regarding the application of AFA, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

Preliminary Results of the Administrative Review

We preliminarily determine that the following weighted-average dumping margins exist for the respondents for the period February 1, 2017, through January 31, 2018.

Producer/exporter	Weighted- average dumping margin (percent)
Dongkuk Steel Mill Co., Ltd	1.43
Hyundai Steel Company	4.19

Disclosure and Public Comment

We intend to disclose the calculations performed for these preliminary results to the parties within five days after public announcement of the preliminary results in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b). Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c), interested parties may submit case briefs not later than 30 days after the date of publication of this notice. Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in the case briefs, may be filed not later than five days after the date for filing case briefs.^[3] Parties who submit case briefs or rebuttal briefs in this proceeding are encouraged to submit with each argument: (1) A statement of the issue, (2) a brief summary of the argument, and (3) a table of authorities.^[4]

Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), interested parties who wish to request a hearing, must submit a written request to the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance, filed electronically via ACCESS. An electronically filed document must be received successfully in its entirety by Commerce's electronic records system, ACCESS, by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time within 30 days after the date of publication of this notice.^[5] Requests should contain: (1) The party's name, address and telephone number; (2) the number of participants; and (3) a list of issues to be discussed. Issues raised in the hearing will be limited to those raised in the respective case briefs. Commerce intends to issue the final results of this administrative review, including the results of its analysis of the issues raised in any written briefs, not later than 120 days after the date of publication of this notice, pursuant to section 751(a)(3)(A) of the Act.

Assessment Rates

If a respondent's weighted-average dumping margin is above de minimis in the final results of this review, we will calculate an importer-specific assessment rate based on the ratio of the total amount of dumping calculated for each importer's examined sales and the total entered value of the sales in accordance with 19 CFR 351.212(b)(1).^[6] If a respondent's weighted-average dumping margin or an importer-specific assessment rate is zero or de minimis in the final results of review, we will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to liquidate the appropriate entries without regard to antidumping duties in accordance with the Final Modification for Reviews.^[7] The final results of this administrative review shall be the basis for the assessment of antidumping duties on entries of merchandise under review and for future deposits of estimated duties, where applicable.

For entries of subject merchandise during the period of review produced by Dongkuk Steel Mill Co., Ltd. or Hyundai Steel Company for which they did not know their merchandise was destined for the United States, we will instruct CBP to liquidate unreviewed entries at the all-others rate if there is no rate for the intermediate company(ies) involved in the transaction.

We intend to issue liquidation instructions to CBP 15 days after publication of the final results of this review.

Cash Deposit Requirements

The following cash deposit requirements for estimated antidumping duties will be effective upon publication of the notice of final results of this review for all shipments of CTL plate from Korea entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication as provided by section 751(a)(2) of the Act: (1) The cash deposit rate for companies subject to this review will be equal to the weighted-average dumping margins established in the final results of the review; (2) for merchandise exported by companies not covered in this review but covered in a prior segment of this proceeding, the cash deposit rate will continue to be the company-specific rate published for the most recent period; (3) if the exporter is not a firm covered in this review, a prior review, or the original investigation but the producer is, the cash deposit rate will be the rate established for the most recently completed segment for the producer of the merchandise; (4) the cash deposit rate for all other producers or exporters will continue to be 0.98 percent,^[8] the all-others rate established in the less-than-fair-value investigation, adjusted for the export-subsidy rate in the companion countervailing duty investigation.

These cash deposit requirements, when imposed, shall remain in effect until further notice.

Notification to Importers

This notice 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 period of review. Failure to comply with this requirement could result in Commerce's presumption that reimbursement of antidumping duties occurred and the subsequent assessment of double antidumping duties.

Notification to Interested Parties

Commerce is issuing and publishing these results in accordance with sections 751(a)(1) and 777(i) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.221(b)(4).

Dated: December 14, 2018.

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

List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum

I. Summary

II. Background

III. Scope of the Order

IV. Discussion of the Methodology

A. Comparisons to Normal Value

1. Determination of Comparison Method

2. Results of the Differential Pricing Analysis

B. Product Comparisons

C. Date of Sale

D. Level of Trade/CEP Offset

E. Affiliated Service Providers

F. Export Price and Constructed Export Price

1. Dongkuk

2. Hyundai Steel

G. Normal Value

1. Overrun Sales

2. Selection of Comparison Market

3. Affiliated Parties

4. Affiliated Party Transactions and Arm's-Length Test

5. Cost of Production

6. Calculation of Normal Value Based on Comparison Market Prices

V. Currency Conversion

VI. Recommendation

Footnotes

1.  See Initiation of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Administrative Reviews, 83 FR 16298, 16304 (April 16, 2018).

2.  See the Memorandum, “Certain Cut-to-Length Carbon-Quality Steel Plate Products from the Republic of Korea: Decision Memorandum for Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review; 2017-2018,” dated concurrently with and hereby adopted by this notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).

3.  See 19 CFR 351.309(d).

4.  See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2).

5.  See 19 CFR 351.310(c).

6.  In these preliminary results, Commerce 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) (Final Modification for Reviews).

7.  See Final Modification for Reviews, 77 FR at 8103. See also 19 CFR 351.106(c)(2).

8.  See, e.g., Certain Cut-to-Length Carbon-Quality Steel Plate Products From the Republic of Korea: Final Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review; 2016-2017, 83 FR 32629, 32630 (July 13, 2018).