E7-10367. Stainless Steel Bar from Germany; Preliminary Results of the Sunset Review of Antidumping Duty Order

AGENCY:

Import Administration, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.

SUMMARY:

On February 1, 2007, the Department of Commerce (“the Department”) initiated a sunset review of the antidumping duty order on stainless steel bar from Germany. On the basis of the notice of intent to participate by domestic interested parties and adequate responses filed on behalf of the domestic and respondent interested parties, the Department is conducting a full sunset review of the antidumping duty order pursuant to section 751(c) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (“the Act”) and section 351.218(e)(2)(i) of the Department's regulations. As a result of this sunset review, the Department preliminarily finds that revocation of the antidumping duty order would likely lead to continuation or recurrence of dumping at the levels listed below in the section entitled “Preliminary Results of Review.”

EFFECTIVE DATE:

May 30, 2007.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Audrey R. Twyman or Brandon Farlander AD/CVD Operations, Office 1, Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14^th Street & Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC, 20230; telephone: [phone] and 202-482-0182, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

On February 1, 2007, the Department published its notice of initiation of the sunset review of the antidumping duty order on stainless steel bar (“SSB”) from Germany, in accordance with section 751(c) of the Act. See Initiation of Five-year (“Sunset”) Reviews, 72 FR 4689 (February 1, 2007).

The Department received the Notice of Intent to Participate from Carpenter Technology Corp.; North American Stainless; Crucible Specialty Metals Division of Crucible Materials Corp.; Electralloy; Outokumpu Stainless Bar, Inc.; Universal Stainless & Alloy Products, Inc.; and Valbruna Slater Stainless, Inc. (collectively “the domestic interested parties”), within the deadline specified in section 351.218(d)(1)(i) of the Department's regulations. The domestic interested parties claimed interested party status under section 771(9)(C) of the Act, as manufacturers of a domestic-like product in the United States.

We received a complete substantive response from the domestic interested parties within the 30-day deadline specified in 19 CFR 351.218(d)(3)(i). We received a response from respondent interested parties in Germany; BGH Edelstahl Freital GmbH, BGH Edelstahl Lippendorf GmbH, BGH Edelstahl Lugau GmbH, and BGH Edelstahl Siegen GmbH (collectively “BGH” or “the respondent interested parties”). We found this response to be adequate because BGH accounted for more than 50 percent of the exports of subject merchandise from Germany to the United States during the sunset review period (January 1, 2002 through December 31, 2006). See Memorandum to Susan H. Kuhbach entitled, “Adequacy Determination in Antidumping Duty Sunset Review of Stainless Steel Bar from Germany,” (March 23, 2007). Therefore, we are conducting a full sunset review of the antidumping duty order on SSB from Germany as provided for at section 751(c)(5)(A) of the Act, and at 19 CFR 351.218(e)(2)(i).

Scope of the Order

For the purposes of this order, the term “stainless steel bar” includes articles of stainless steel in straight lengths that have been either hot-rolled, forged, turned, cold-drawn, cold-rolled or otherwise cold-finished, or ground, having a uniform solid cross section along their whole length in the shape of circles, segments of circles, ovals, rectangles (including squares), triangles, hexagons, octagons, or other convex polygons. Stainless steel bar includes cold-finished stainless steel bars that are turned or ground in straight lengths, whether produced from hot-rolled bar or from straightened and cut rod or wire, and reinforcing bars that have indentations, ribs, grooves, or other deformations produced during the rolling process.

Except as specified above, the term does not include stainless steel semi-finished products, cut length flat-rolled products (i.e., cut length rolled products which if less than 4.75 mm in thickness have a width measuring at least 10 times the thickness, or if 4.75 mm or more in thickness having a width which exceeds 150 mm and measures at least twice the thickness), products that have been cut from stainless steel sheet, strip or plate, wire (i.e., cold-formed products in coils, of any uniform solid cross section along their whole length, which do not conform to the definition of flat-rolled products), and angles, shapes and sections.

The stainless steel bar subject to this review is currently classifiable under subheadings 7222.11.00.05, 7222.11.00.50, 7222.19.00.05, 7222.19.00.50, 7222.20.00.05, 7222.20.00.45, 7222.20.00.75, and 7222.30.00.00 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (“HTSUS”). Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the scope of the order is dispositive.

Analysis of Comments Received

All issues raised in this sunset review are addressed in the “Issues and Decision Memorandum for the Sunset Review of the Antidumping Duty Order on Stainless Steel Bar from Germany; Preliminary Results” (“Decision Memo”) from Stephen J. Claeys, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import Administration, to David M. Spooner, Assistant Secretary for Import Administration, dated May 22, 2007, which is hereby adopted by this notice. The issues discussed in the Decision Memo include the likelihood of continuation or recurrence of dumping and the magnitude of the margin likely to prevail if the antidumping duty order was revoked. Parties can find a complete discussion of all issues raised in this sunset review and the corresponding recommendations in this public memo, which is on file in room B-099 of the main Commerce Department Building. In addition, a complete version of the Decision Memo can be accessed directly on the Web at http://ia.ita.doc.gov/​frn, under the heading “May 2007.” The paper copy and electronic version of the Decision Memo are identical in content.

Preliminary Results of Review

The Department preliminarily determines that revocation of the antidumping duty order on SSB from Germany is likely to lead to continuation or recurrence of dumping at the following weighted-average margins:

Manufacturers/Producers/Exporters	Weighted-Average Margin (Percent)
BGH Edelstahl Seigen GmbH / BGH Edelstahl Freital GmbH	0.73
Edelstahl Witten-Krefeld GmbH	10.82, as amended
Krupp Edelstahlprofile	31.25, as amended
All Others	15.16, as amended

Any interested party may request a hearing within 30 days of publication of this notice in accordance with 19 CFR 351.310(c). Interested parties may submit case briefs no later than 30 days after the date of publication of this notice, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.309(c)(1)(i). Rebuttal briefs, which must be limited to issues raised in the case briefs, may be filed no later than 5 days after the case briefs, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.309(d)(1). Any hearing, if requested, will be held two days after rebuttal briefs are due, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.310(d)(1). The Department will issue a notice of final results of this sunset review, which will include the results of its analysis of issues raised in any such briefs, no later than September 29, 2007.

This five-year (“sunset”) review and notice are in accordance with sections 751(c), 752,and 777(i)(1) of the Act.

Dated: May 22, 2007.

David M. Spooner,

Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.