2019-10271. Circular Welded Carbon Steel Pipes and Tubes From Thailand: Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review and Preliminary Determination of No Shipments; 2017-2018

AGENCY:

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

SUMMARY:

The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily finds that Saha Thai Steel Pipe (Public) Company, Ltd. (Saha Thai) made sales of subject merchandise at less than normal value during the period of review (POR) March 1, 2017 through February 28, 2018. We invite interested parties to comment on these preliminary results.

DATES:

Applicable May 17, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

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

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Commerce is conducting an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on circular welded carbon steel pipes and tubes (pipe and tube) from Thailand. The POR is March 1, 2017, through February 28, 2018. Commerce selected Saha Thai for individual examination.

On November 29, 2018, Commerce extended the time for issuing the preliminary results of this review from 245 days to 335 days from the last day of the anniversary month.^[1] Commerce exercised its discretion to toll all deadlines affected by the partial federal government closure from December 22, 2018, through the resumption of operations on January 29, 2019.^[2] This extended the deadline for the preliminary results to April 10, 2019. On April 5, 2019, we further extended the deadline for the preliminary results an additional 30 days until May 10, 2019.^[3]

Scope of the Order

The products covered by the antidumping order are certain circular welded carbon steel pipes and tubes from Thailand. The subject merchandise has an outside diameter of 0.375 inches or more, but not exceeding 16 inches. For a full description of the scope of this order, see the accompanying Preliminary Decision Memorandum.^[4]

Preliminary Determination of No Shipments

Based on an analysis of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) information, and comments provided by interested parties, Commerce preliminarily determines that three companies under review, Expeditors Ltd. (Expeditors); K Line Logistics (K-Line); and Panalpina World Transport Ltd. (Panalpina), each had no shipments during the POR. For additional information regarding this determination, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

Methodology

Commerce conducted this review in accordance with section 751(a)(2) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Export price is 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 these preliminary results, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. The Preliminary Decision Memorandum is a public document and is on file electronically 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 it is available to all parties in the Central Records Unit, Room B8024 of the main Department of Commerce building. In addition, the signed Preliminary Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly at http://enforcement.trade.gov/​frn/​. The signed and the electronic versions of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum are identical in content. A list of topics discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is attached in the appendix to this notice.

Preliminary Results of Review

Commerce preliminarily determines that the following weighted-average dumping margins exist for the period March 1, 2017, through February 28, 2018:

Producer or exporter	Weighted- average dumping margin (percent)
Saha Thai Steel Pipe (Public) Company, Ltd	5.32
Apex International Logistics	5.32
Aquatec Maxcon Asia	5.32
Asian Unity Part Co., Ltd	5.32
CSE Technologies Co., Ltd	5.32
Pacific Pipe Public Company Limited (also known as Pacific Pipe Company)	5.32
Pacific Pipe and Pump	5.32
Polypipe Engineering Co., Ltd	5.32
Siam Fittings Co., Ltd	5.32
Siam Steel Pipe Co., Ltd	5.32
Thai Malleable Iron and Steel	5.32
Thai Premium Pipe Co., Ltd	5.32
Vatana Phaisal Engineering Company	5.32

Disclosure and Public Comment

We intend to disclose the calculations performed to parties in this proceeding 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.^[5] 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.^[6]

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 Commerce's electronic records system, ACCESS. An electronically filed document must be received successfully in its entirety in ACCESS by 5 p.m. Eastern Time within 30 days after the date of publication of this notice. 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 by each party in their respective case brief. 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, unless extended, pursuant to section 751(a)(3)(A) of the Act.

Assessment Rates

Upon completion of this administrative review, Commerce shall determine and CBP shall assess antidumping duties on all appropriate entries. If a respondent's weighted-average dumping margin is not zero or de minimis (i.e., less than 0.5 percent) in the final results of this review, we will calculate importer-specific ad valorem assessment rates on the basis of the ratio of the total amount of dumping calculated for an importer's examined sales and the total entered value of such sales in accordance with 19 CFR 351.212(b)(1). Where either the respondent's weighted-average dumping margin is zero or de minimis within the meaning of 19 CFR 351.106(c), 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.

Commerce clarified its “automatic assessment” regulation on May 6, 2003.^[7] This clarification applies to entries of subject merchandise during the POR produced by a respondent for which it did not know its merchandise was destined for the United States. In such instances, 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 instructions to CBP 15 days after publication of the final results of this review.

Cash Deposit Requirements

The following cash deposit requirements will be effective for all shipments of subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of the final results of this administrative review, as provided for by section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act: (1) The cash deposit rate for the companies under review will be equal to the weighted-average dumping margin established in the final results of this review (except, if that rate is de minimis, then the cash deposit rate will be zero); (2) for previously reviewed or investigated companies not listed above in the Preliminary Results of Review, including those for which Commerce may determine had no shipments during the POR, the cash deposit rate will continue to be the company-specific rate published for the most recently completed segment of this proceeding; (3) if the exporter is not a firm covered in this review or another completed segment of this proceeding, but the manufacturer is, then the cash deposit rate will be the rate established for the most recently completed segment of this proceeding for the manufacturer of the merchandise; and (4) if neither the exporter nor the manufacturer is a firm covered in this or any previously completed segment of this proceeding, then the cash deposit rate will be the “all-others” rate of 15.67 percent established in the less-than-fair-value investigation.^[8] These 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 review period. 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

We are issuing and publishing these preliminary results in accordance with sections 751(a)(1) and 777(i) of the Act, and 19 CFR 351.213(h) and 351.221(b)(4).

Dated: May 10, 2019.

Jeffrey I. Kessler,

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. Preliminary Determination of No Shipments

V. Particular Market Situation

A. Background

B. Interested Parties' Arguments

C. Analysis

VI. Comparison to Normal Value

VII. Product Comparisons

VIII. Discussion of Methodology

A. Determination of Comparison Method

B. Results of the Differential Pricing Analysis

C. Date of Sale

D. Export Price

E. Normal Value

F. Currency Conversion

IX. Recommendation

Footnotes

1.  See Memorandum, “2017-2018 Antidumping Duty Administrative Review of Circular Welded Carbon Steel Pipes and Tubes from Thailand: Extension of Deadline for Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review,” dated November 29, 2018.

2.  See Memorandum, “Deadlines Affected by the Partial Shutdown of the Federal Government,” dated January 28, 2019. All deadlines in this segment of the proceeding have been extended by 40 days.

3.  See Memorandum, “2017-2018 Antidumping Duty Administrative Review of Circular Welded Carbon Steel Pipes and Tubes from Thailand: Extension of Deadline for Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review,” dated April 5, 2019.

4.  See Memorandum, “Circular Welded Carbon Steel Pipes and Tubes from Thailand: Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, and Preliminary Determination of No Shipments; 2017-2018,” dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).

5.  See 19 CFR 351.309(d).

6.  See 19 CFR 351.303 (for general filing requirements).

7.  For a full discussion of this clarification, see Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings: Assessment of Antidumping Duties, 68 FR 23954 (May 6, 2003).

8.  See Antidumping Duty Order: Circular Welded Carbon Steel Pipes and Tubes from Thailand, 51 FR 8341 (March 11, 1986).