2020-08546. Wooden Cabinets and Vanities and Components Thereof From the People's Republic of China: Countervailing Duty Order

AGENCY:

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

SUMMARY:

Based on affirmative final determinations by the Department of Commerce (Commerce) and the International Trade Commission (ITC), Commerce is issuing a countervailing duty (CVD) order on wooden cabinets and vanities and components thereof (wooden cabinets and vanities) from the People's Republic of China (China).

DATES:

Applicable April 21, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Benito Ballesteros, AD/CVD Operations, Office V, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

In accordance with section 705(d) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (Act), on February 28, 2020, Commerce published its affirmative final determination that countervailable subsidies are being provided to producers and exporters of wooden cabinets and vanities from China.^[1] On April 13, 2020, the ITC notified Commerce of its final determination that an industry in the United States is materially injured within the meaning of section 705(b)(1)(A)(i) of the Act by reason of subsidized imports of subject merchandise from China.^[2]

Scope of the Order

The products covered by this order are wooden cabinets and vanities from China. For a complete description of the scope of this order, see the Appendix to this notice.

Countervailing Duty Order

On April 13, 2020, in accordance with section 705(d) of the Act, the ITC notified Commerce of its final determination in this investigation, in which it found that an industry in the United States is materially injured within the meaning of section 705(b)(1)(A)(i) of the Act by reason of subsidized imports of wooden cabinets and vanities from China.^[3] Therefore, in accordance with sections 705(c)(2) and 706 of the Act, Commerce is issuing this countervailing duty order. Because the ITC determined that imports of wooden cabinets and vanities from China are materially injuring a U.S. industry, unliquidated entries of such merchandise from China, entered or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, are subject to the assessment of countervailing duties.

Therefore, in accordance with section 706(b)(1) of the Act, Commerce will direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to assess, upon further instruction by Commerce, countervailing duties for all relevant entries of wooden cabinets and vanities from China, which are entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after August 12, 2019, the date of publication of the Preliminary Determination,^[4] but will not include entries occurring after the expiration of the provisional measures period and before the publication of the ITC's final injury determination under section 705(b) of the Act, as further described below.

Suspension of Liquidation

In accordance with section 706 of the Act, we will instruct CBP to reinstitute the suspension of liquidation of wooden cabinets and vanities from China as described in the Appendix to this notice which are entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of the ITC's notice of final determination in the Federal Register. We will also instruct CBP to require, at the same time as importers would normally deposit estimated customs duties on the subject merchandise, a cash deposit of countervailing duties for each entry of the subject merchandise in an amount based on the net countervailable subsidy rates below for the subject merchandise. These instructions suspending liquidation will remain in effect until further notice. The all-others rate applies to all producers or exporters not specifically listed below.

Company	Subsidy rate (%)
The Ancientree Cabinet Co., Ltd.5	13.33
Dalian Meisen Woodworking Co., Ltd.6	18.27
Rizhao Foremost Woodwork Manufacturing Company Ltd.7	31.18
Henan AiDiJia Furniture Co., Ltd	293.45
Deway International Trade Co., Ltd	293.45
All Others	20.93

Provisional Measures

Section 703(d) of the Act states that instructions issued pursuant to an affirmative preliminary determination may not remain in effect for more than four months. In the underlying investigation, Commerce published the Preliminary Determination on August 12, 2019. As such, the four-month period beginning on the date of the publication of the Preliminary Determination ended on December 9, 2019. Furthermore, section 707(b) of the Act states that definitive duties are to begin on the date of publication of the ITC's final injury determination.

Therefore, in accordance with section 703(d) of the Act and our practice, we instructed CBP to terminate the suspension of liquidation and to liquidate, without regard to countervailing duties, unliquidated entries of wooden cabinets and vanities from China entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption, after December 9, 2019, the date on which the provisional measures expired, until and through the day preceding the date of publication of the ITC's final injury determination in the Federal Register. Suspension of liquidation will resume on the date of publication of the ITC's final determination in the Federal Register.

Notifications to Interested Parties

This notice constitutes the countervailing duty order with respect to wooden cabinets and vanities from China pursuant to section 706(a) of the Act. Interested parties can find a list of countervailing duty orders currently in effect at http://enforcement.trade.gov/​stats/​iastats1.html.

This order is issued and published in accordance with sections 705(c)(2) and 706(a) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.211(b).

Dated: April 16, 2020.

Jeffrey I. Kessler,

Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix

Scope of the Order

The merchandise subject to the order consists of wooden cabinets and vanities that are for permanent installation (including floor mounted, wall mounted, ceiling hung or by attachment of plumbing), and wooden components thereof. Wooden cabinets and vanities and wooden components are made substantially of wood products, including solid wood and engineered wood products (including those made from wood particles, fibers, or other wooden materials such as plywood, strand board, block board, particle board, or fiberboard), or bamboo. Wooden cabinets and vanities consist of a cabinet box (which typically includes a top, bottom, sides, back, base blockers, ends/end panels, stretcher rails, toe kicks, and/or shelves) and may or may not include a frame, door, drawers and/or shelves. Subject merchandise includes wooden cabinets and vanities with or without wood veneers, wood, paper or other overlays, or laminates, with or without non-wood components or trim such as metal, marble, glass, plastic, or other resins, whether or not surface finished or unfinished, and whether or not completed.

Wooden cabinets and vanities are covered by the order whether or not they are imported attached to, or in conjunction with, faucets, metal plumbing, sinks and/or sink bowls, or countertops. If wooden cabinets or vanities are imported attached to, or in conjunction with, such merchandise, only the wooden cabinet or vanity is covered by the scope.

Subject merchandise includes the following wooden component parts of cabinets and vanities: (1) Wooden cabinet and vanity frames (2) wooden cabinet and vanity boxes (which typically include a top, bottom, sides, back, base blockers, ends/end panels, stretcher rails, toe kicks, and/or shelves), (3) wooden cabinet or vanity doors, (4) wooden cabinet or vanity drawers and drawer components (which typically include sides, backs, bottoms, and faces), (5) back panels and end panels, (6) and desks, shelves, and tables that are attached to or incorporated in the subject merchandise.

Subject merchandise includes all unassembled, assembled and/or “ready to assemble” (RTA) wooden cabinets and vanities, also commonly known as “flat packs,” except to the extent such merchandise is already covered by the scope of antidumping and countervailing duty orders on Hardwood Plywood from the People's Republic of China. See Certain Hardwood Plywood Products from the People's Republic of China: Amended Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, and Antidumping Duty Order, 83 FR 504 (January 4, 2018); Certain Hardwood Plywood Products from the People's Republic of China: Countervailing Duty Order, 83 FR 513 (January 4, 2018). RTA wooden cabinets and vanities are defined as cabinets or vanities packaged so that at the time of importation they may include: (1) Wooden components required to assemble a cabinet or vanity (including drawer faces and doors); and (2) parts (e.g., screws, washers, dowels, nails, handles, knobs, adhesive glues) required to assemble a cabinet or vanity. RTAs may enter the United States in one or in multiple packages.

Subject merchandise also includes wooden cabinets and vanities and in-scope components that have been further processed in a third country, including but not limited to one or more of the following: Trimming, cutting, notching, punching, drilling, painting, staining, finishing, assembly, or any other processing that would not otherwise remove the merchandise from the scope of the investigation if performed in the country of manufacture of the in-scope product.

Excluded from the scope of the order, if entered separate from a wooden cabinet or vanity are:

(1) Aftermarket accessory items which may be added to or installed into an interior of a cabinet and which are not considered a structural or core component of a wooden cabinet or vanity. Aftermarket accessory items may be made of wood, metal, plastic, composite material, or a combination thereof that can be inserted into a cabinet and which are utilized in the function of organization/accessibility on the interior of a cabinet; and include:

• Inserts or dividers which are placed into drawer boxes with the purpose of organizing or dividing the internal portion of the drawer into multiple areas for the purpose of containing smaller items such as cutlery, utensils, bathroom essentials, etc.
• Round or oblong inserts that rotate internally in a cabinet for the purpose of accessibility to foodstuffs, dishware, general supplies, etc.

(2) Solid wooden accessories including corbels and rosettes, which serve the primary purpose of decoration and personalization.

(3) Non-wooden cabinet hardware components including metal hinges, brackets, catches, locks, drawer slides, fasteners (nails, screws, tacks, staples), handles, and knobs.

(4) Medicine cabinets that meet all of the following five criteria are excluded from the scope: (1) Wall mounted; (2) assembled at the time of entry into the United States; (3) contain one or more mirrors; (4) be packaged for retail sale at time of entry; and (5) have a maximum depth of seven inches.

Also excluded from the scope of the order are:

(1) All products covered by the scope of the antidumping duty order on Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the People's Republic of China. See Notice of Amended Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Antidumping Duty Order: Wooden Bedroom Furniture from the People's Republic of China, 70 FR 329 (January 4, 2005).

(2) All products covered by the scope of the antidumping and countervailing duty orders on Hardwood Plywood from the People's Republic of China. See Certain Hardwood Plywood Products from the People's Republic of China: Amended Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, and Antidumping Duty Order, 83 FR 504 (January 4, 2018); Certain Hardwood Plywood Products from the People's Republic of China: Countervailing Duty Order, 83 FR 513 (January 4, 2018).

Imports of subject merchandise are classified under Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) statistical numbers 9403.40.9060 and 9403.60.8081. The subject component parts of wooden cabinets and vanities may be entered into the United States under HTSUS statistical number 9403.90.7080. Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the scope of the order is dispositive.

Footnotes

1.  See Wooden Cabinets and Vanities and Components Thereof from the People's Republic of China: Final Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination, 85 FR 11962 (February 28, 2020) (Final Determination).

2.  See Letter to Jeffrey Kessler, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Enforcement and Compliance, from David S. Johanson, Chairman of the U.S. International Trade Commission, dated April 13, 2020 (ITC Letter).

3.  Id.

4.  See Wooden Cabinets and Vanities and Components Thereof from the People's Republic of China: Preliminary Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination, and Alignment of Final Determination with Final Antidumping Duty Determination, 84 FR 39798 (August 12, 2019) (Preliminary Determination) and accompanying Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

5.  In the Final Determination, Commerce found the following companies to be cross-owned with The Ancientree Cabinet Co., Ltd.: Jiangsu Hongjia Wood Co., Ltd., Jiangsu Hongjia Wood Co., Ltd. Shanghai Branch, and Shanghai Hongjia Wood Co., Ltd. See Final Determination, 85 FR at 11963.

6.  In the Final Determination, Commerce found the following company to be cross-owned with Dalian Meisen Woodworking Co., Ltd.: Dalian Hechang Technology Development Co., Ltd. Id.

7.  In the Final Determination, Commerce found the following companies to be cross-owned with Rizhao Foremost Woodwork Manufacturing Company Ltd.: Foremost Worldwide Co., Ltd. and Rizhao Foremost Landbridge Wood Industries Co., Ltd. Id.