00-17515. Notice of Antidumping Duty Order: Bulk Aspirin From the People's Republic of China

AGENCY:

Import Administration, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

July 11, 2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Rosa Jeong, or Ryan Langan, Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20230; telephone: [phone], and [phone], respectively.

The Applicable Statute

Unless otherwise indicated, all citations to the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (“the Act”), are references to the provisions effective January 1, 1995, the effective date of the amendments made to the Act by the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (“URAA”). In addition, all citations to the regulations of the Department of Commerce (“the Department”) are to 19 CFR Part 351 (1998).

Scope of Order

The product covered by this antidumping duty order is bulk acetylsalicylic acid, commonly referred to as bulk aspirin, whether or not in pharmaceutical or compound form, not put up in dosage form (tablet, capsule, powders or similar form for direct human consumption). Bulk aspirin may be imported in two forms, as pure ortho-acetylsalicylic acid or as mixed ortho-acetylsalicylic acid. Pure ortho-acetylsalicylic acid can be either in crystal form or granulated into a fine powder (pharmaceutical form). This product has the chemical formula C₉ H₈ O₄. It is defined by the official monograph of the United States Pharmacopoeia (“USP”) 23. It is classified under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (“HTSUS”) subheading 2918.22.1000.

Mixed ortho-acetylsalicylic acid consists of ortho-acetylsalicylic acid combined with other inactive substances such as starch, lactose, cellulose, or coloring materials and/or other active substances. The presence of other active substances must be in concentrations less than that specified for particular nonprescription drug combinations of aspirin and active substances as published in the Handbook of Nonprescription Drugs, eighth edition, American Pharmaceutical Association. This product is classified under HTSUS subheading 3003.90.0000. Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the merchandise under investigation is dispositive.

Antidumping Duty Order

On June 27, 2000, the Department published in the Federal Register (65 FR 39598), its “Notice of Amended Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value: Bulk Aspirin from the PRC” in which the final antidumping duty margins for Shandong Xinhua Pharmaceutical Factory and Jilin Pharmaceutical Import and Export Corporation were revised. The revised margins are listed below.

On June 30, 2000, in accordance with section 735(d) of the Act, the U.S. International Trade Commission (“ITC”) notified the Department that a U.S. industry is “threatened with material injury,” within the meaning of section 735(b)(1)(A)(ii) of the Act, by reason of less-than-fair-value imports of bulk aspirin from the People's Republic of China (“PRC”).

According to section 736(b)(2) of the Act, duties shall be assessed on subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of the ITC's notice of final determination if that determination is based on the threat of material injury and is not accompanied by a finding that injury would have resulted without the imposition of suspension of liquidation of entries since the Department's preliminary determination. In addition, section 736(b)(2) of the Act requires the Customs Service to refund any cash deposits or bonds of estimated antidumping duties posted since the Department's preliminary antidumping determination if the ITC's final determination is threat-based.

Because the ITC's final determination is based on the threat of material injury and is not accompanied by a finding that injury would have resulted but for the imposition of suspension of liquidation of entries since the Department's preliminary determination, section 736(b)(2) of the Act is applicable to this order. Therefore, the Department will direct the Customs Service to assess, upon further advice, antidumping duties on all unliquidated entries of bulk aspirin from the PRC entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of the ITC's notice of final determination of threat of material injury in the Federal Register and to terminate the suspension of liquidation for entries of bulk aspirin from the PRC entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption prior to that date. The Department will also instruct the Customs Service to refund any cash deposits made, or bonds posted, between the publication date of the Department's preliminary antidumping determination and the publication date of the ITC's final determination.

On or after the date of publication of the ITC's notice of final determination in the Federal Register, Customs officers must require, at the same time as importers would normally deposit estimated duties, cash deposits for the subject merchandise equal to the weighted-average antidumping duty margins as noted below:

Exporter/manufacturer	Weighted-average margin percentage
Shandong Xinhua Pharmaceutical Factory	16.51
Jilin Pharmaceutical Import and Export Corporation	10.85
PRC-wide Rate	144.02

This notice constitutes the antidumping duty order with respect to bulk aspirin from the PRC, pursuant to section 735(a) of the Act. Interested parties may contact the Central Records Unit, Room B-099 of the Main Commerce Building for copies of an updated list of antidumping duty orders currently in effect.

This order is published in accordance with sections 736(a) and 19 CFR 351.211.

Dated: July 5, 2000.

Troy H. Cribb,

Acting Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.