[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 143 (Tuesday, July 27, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40557-40559]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-19125]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-428-825]
Notice of Amended Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair
Value and Antidumping Duty Order; Stainless Steel Sheet and Strip in
Coils From Germany
AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of Amended Final Determination of Sales at Less Than
Fair Value and Antidumping Duty Order.
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EFFECTIVE DATE: July 29, 1999.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Charles Ranado, Stephanie Arthur, or
Robert James, Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Enforcement Group
III, Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S.
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW,
Washington, DC 20230, at (202) 482-3518, (202) 482-6312, or (202) 482-
5222, respectively.
Applicable Statute and Regulations
Unless otherwise indicated, all citations to the Tariff Act of
1930, as amended (the Tariff Act), are to the provisions effective
January 1, 1995, the effective date of the amendments made to the
Tariff Act by the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA). In addition,
unless otherwise indicated, all citations to the Department of
Commerce's (the Department's) regulations are to the regulations
codified at 19 CFR Part 351 (April 1, 1998).
Amendment to the Final Determination
On May 19, 1999, the Department determined that stainless steel
sheet and strip in coils (stainless sheet in coil) from Germany are
being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair
value (LTFV), as provided in section 735(a) of the Tariff Act. See
Notice of Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value:
Stainless Steel Sheet and Strip in Coils From Germany, 64 FR 30710
(June 8, 1999) (Final Determination). On May 28, 1999, respondent Krupp
Thyssen Nirosta, GmbH (KTN) timely filed an allegation that the
Department had made several ministerial errors in its final
determination. Petitioners (Allegheney Ludlum Corp., Armco, Inc. J&L
Specialty Steel, Inc., Washington Steel Division of Bethlehem Steel
Corp., United Steelworkers of America, AFL-CIO/CLC, Butler Armco
Independent Union, and Zanesville Armco Independent Organization) also
timely alleged two ministerial errors on June 2, 1999. Both interested
parties requested that we correct the errors and publish a notice of
amended final determination in the Federal Register. See 19 CFR
351.224(e). In addition, on June 8, 1999, petitioners filed comments in
rebuttal of two of KTN's alleged errors.
KTN's submission alleges the following errors:
In attempting to remove a third-country shipment from
KTN's U.S. sales listing, the Department inadvertently deleted the
wrong transaction;
The Department used the incorrect interest rates for
calculating home market credit expenses and in certain instances U.S.
credit expenses and inventory carrying costs;
For one of KTN's affiliated home market service centers,
the Department inadvertently relied upon an outdated database
superseded by a later submission;
The Department erred in adjusting KTN's cost of production
(COP) for certain products subjected to further processing by the
affiliated home market service center, thus overstating the COP;
The Department's attempt to revise KTN's variable cost of
manufacture (VCOM) to reflect corrected nickel prices did not work due
to a programming error;
For an affiliated U.S. reseller to which we applied
adverse facts available the weighted-average gross unit price set forth
in the Department's May 19, 1999 analysis memorandum differs from that
hand-entered into the margin program;
For this same reseller, the Department inadvertently
relied upon an outdated database superseded by a later submission;
Finally, in applying adverse facts available to the
affiliated U.S. reseller, the Department erred by failing to exclude
putatively cut-to-length material (which is not included in the scope
of this investigation).
See Letter, Hogan & Hartson, May 28, 1999 passim. In their
submission petitioners note that the Department stated that it intended
to apply adverse facts available for KTN's failure to report certain
home market downstream sales made by its affiliates. To do this,
petitioners aver, the Department intended to calculate the highest
gross unit price for each product (i.e., control number) for sales
between KTN and its affiliates and use this price as the basis for NV.
However, petitioners allege, the Department inadvertently omitted the
customer code for one of the home market affiliates to which we were
applying facts available. In addition, petitioners argue that the
Department's application of facts available for these unreported sales
had no effect in certain cases because the Department inadvertently
included the affiliated customers in its arm's-length test; when these
customers subsequently failed the arm's-length test the transactions
were excluded entirely from the margin calculation and not subjected to
facts available, as clearly intended by the Department.
Petitioners' rebuttal addressed two of KTN's allegations. With
respect to KTN's VCOM, petitioners argue that any correction to home
market VCOM applies equally to both U.S. VCOM and U.S. total cost of
manufacture. These latter two are both needed to calculate accurate
adjustments for differences in physical characteristics of the home
market and U.S. merchandise pursuant to section 773(a)(6)(C)(ii) of the
Tariff
[[Page 40558]]
Act. With respect to KTN's U.S. reseller, petitioners contend that the
Department's decision not to attempt segregating cut-to-length
stainless sheet and strip from the subject stainless sheet in coils is
methodological, not ministerial. Furthermore, petitioners continue, the
Department determined that the U.S. reseller's sales data were so
replete with errors as to be unreliable in toto; in petitioners view,
it would be inappropriate for the Department now to accept the
reliability of selective portions of those data (i.e., the two specific
variables KTN suggests using for this purpose). Because the Department
rejected the entire database, petitioners aver, it would not make sense
for the Department to then assume that these two fields were reported
accurately and to use these as the basis for segregating cut-to-length
products from products in coil form.
After reviewing both parties' allegations and petitioners rebuttal
we have determined, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224, that the Final
Determination includes several ministerial errors. As to KTN's
allegations, we agree with KTN that each of the points raised by KTN
constitutes a ministerial error with the exception of the alleged
``failure'' to exclude cut-to-length merchandise. Our treatment of the
U.S. reseller's reported sales represented a methodological choice, and
not ``an error in addition, subtraction, or other arithmetic function''
or ``other similar types of unintentional error.'' 19 CFR 351.224(e);
see also Memorandum For Richard Weible; ``Allegations of Ministerial
Errors; Final Determination in the Investigation of Stainless Steel
Sheet and Strip in Coils from Germany'' (Ministerial Errors
Memorandum), dated July 23, 1999, a public version of which is on file
in room B-099 of the main Commerce building, and the Final
Determination, 64 FR at 30739. We also agree with petitioners that the
intended correction to KTN's home market VCOM applies equally to KTN's
U.S. VCOM and U.S. TCOM, and have adjusted each accordingly for this
amended final determination.
Finally, we also agree that the two errors alleged by petitioners
represent ministerial errors and have corrected both for this final
determination. For a detailed description of each of these allegations
and, where applicable, our resultant corrections, see the Ministerial
Errors Memorandum. Therefore, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(e), we
are amending the final determination of the antidumping duty
investigation of stainless steel sheet and strip in coils from Germany.
The revised weighted-average dumping margins are in the ``Antidumping
Duty Order'' section, below.
Scope of the Order
For purposes of this order, the products covered are certain
stainless steel sheet and strip in coils. Stainless steel is an alloy
steel containing, by weight, 1.2 percent or less of carbon and 10.5
percent or more of chromium, with or without other elements. The
subject sheet and strip is a flat-rolled product in coils that is
greater than 9.5 mm in width and less than 4.75 mm in thickness, and
that is annealed or otherwise heat treated and pickled or otherwise
descaled. The subject sheet and strip may also be further processed
(e.g., cold-rolled, polished, aluminized, coated, etc.) provided that
it maintains the specific dimensions of sheet and strip following such
processing.
The merchandise subject to this order is classified in the
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS) at subheadings:
7219.13.00.30, 7219.13.00.50, 7219.13.00.70, 7219.13.00.80,
7219.14.00.30, 7219.14.00.65, 7219.14.00.90, 7219.32.00.05,
7219.32.00.20, 7219.32.00.25, 7219.32.00.35, 7219.32.00.36,
7219.32.00.38, 7219.32.00.42, 7219.32.00.44, 7219.33.00.05,
7219.33.00.20, 7219.33.00.25, 7219.33.00.35, 7219.33.00.36,
7219.33.00.38, 7219.33.00.42, 7219.33.00.44, 7219.34.00.05,
7219.34.00.20, 7219.34.00.25, 7219.34.00.30, 7219.34.00.35,
7219.35.00.05, 7219.35.00.15, 7219.35.00.30, 7219.35.00.35,
7219.90.00.10, 7219.90.00.20, 7219.90.00.25, 7219.90.00.60,
7219.90.00.80, 7220.12.10.00, 7220.12.50.00, 7220.20.10.10,
7220.20.10.15, 7220.20.10.60, 7220.20.10.80, 7220.20.60.05,
7220.20.60.10, 7220.20.60.15, 7220.20.60.60, 7220.20.60.80,
7220.20.70.05, 7220.20.70.10, 7220.20.70.15, 7220.20.70.60,
7220.20.70.80, 7220.20.80.00, 7220.20.90.30, 7220.20.90.60,
7220.90.00.10, 7220.90.00.15, 7220.90.00.60, and 7220.90.00.80.
Although the HTS subheadings are provided for convenience and Customs
purposes, the Department's written description of the merchandise under
investigation is dispositive.
Excluded from the scope of this order are the following: (1) sheet
and strip that is not annealed or otherwise heat treated and pickled or
otherwise descaled, (2) sheet and strip that is cut to length, (3)
plate (i.e., flat-rolled stainless steel products of a thickness of
4.75 mm or more), (4) flat wire (i.e., cold-rolled sections, with a
prepared edge, rectangular in shape, of a width of not more than 9.5
mm), and (5) razor blade steel. Razor blade steel is a flat-rolled
product of stainless steel, not further worked than cold-rolled (cold-
reduced), in coils, of a width of not more than 23 mm and a thickness
of 0.266 mm or less, containing, by weight, 12.5 to 14.5 percent
chromium, and certified at the time of entry to be used in the
manufacture of razor blades. See Chapter 72 of the HTS, ``Additional
U.S. Note'' 1(d).
Flapper valve steel is also excluded from the scope of the order.
This product is defined as stainless steel strip in coils containing,
by weight, between 0.37 and 0.43 percent carbon, between 1.15 and 1.35
percent molybdenum, and between 0.20 and 0.80 percent manganese. This
steel also contains, by weight, phosphorus of 0.025 percent or less,
silicon of between 0.20 and 0.50 percent, and sulfur of 0.020 percent
or less. The product is manufactured by means of vacuum arc remelting,
with inclusion controls for sulphide of no more than 0.04 percent and
for oxide of no more than 0.05 percent. Flapper valve steel has a
tensile strength of between 210 and 300 ksi, yield strength of between
170 and 270 ksi, plus or minus 8 ksi, and a hardness (Hv) of between
460 and 590. Flapper valve steel is most commonly used to produce
specialty flapper valves in compressors.
Also excluded is a product referred to as suspension foil, a
specialty steel product used in the manufacture of suspension
assemblies for computer disk drives. Suspension foil is described as
302/304 grade or 202 grade stainless steel of a thickness between 14
and 127 microns, with a thickness tolerance of plus-or-minus 2.01
microns, and surface glossiness of 200 to 700 percent Gs. Suspension
foil must be supplied in coil widths of not more than 407 mm, and with
a mass of 225 kg or less. Roll marks may only be visible on one side,
with no scratches of measurable depth. The material must exhibit
residual stresses of 2 mm maximum deflection, and flatness of 1.6 mm
over 685 mm length.
Certain stainless steel foil for automotive catalytic converters is
also excluded from the scope of this order. This stainless steel strip
in coils is a specialty foil with a thickness of between 20 and 110
microns used to produce a metallic substrate with a honeycomb structure
for use in automotive catalytic converters. The steel contains, by
weight, carbon of no more than 0.030 percent, silicon of no more than
1.0 percent, manganese of no more than 1.0 percent, chromium of
[[Page 40559]]
between 19 and 22 percent, aluminum of no less than 5.0 percent,
phosphorus of no more than 0.045 percent, sulfur of no more than 0.03
percent, lanthanum of less than 0.002 or greater than 0.05 percent, and
total rare earth elements of more than 0.06 percent, with the balance
iron.
Permanent magnet iron-chromium-cobalt alloy stainless strip is also
excluded from the scope of this order. This ductile stainless steel
strip contains, by weight, 26 to 30 percent chromium, and 7 to 10
percent cobalt, with the remainder of iron, in widths 228.6 mm or less,
and a thickness between 0.127 and 1.270 mm. It exhibits magnetic
remanence between 9,000 and 12,000 gauss, and a coercivity of between
50 and 300 oersteds. This product is most commonly used in electronic
sensors and is currently available under proprietary trade names such
as ``Arnokrome III.'' 1
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\1\ ``Arnokrome III'' is a trademark of the Arnold Engineering
Company.
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Certain electrical resistance alloy steel is also excluded from the
scope of this order. This product is defined as a non-magnetic
stainless steel manufactured to American Society of Testing and
Materials (ASTM) specification B344 and containing, by weight, 36
percent nickel, 18 percent chromium, and 46 percent iron, and is most
notable for its resistance to high temperature corrosion. It has a
melting point of 1390 degrees Celsius and displays a creep rupture
limit of 4 kilograms per square millimeter at 1000 degrees Celsius.
This steel is most commonly used in the production of heating ribbons
for circuit breakers and industrial furnaces, and in rheostats for
railway locomotives. The product is currently available under
proprietary trade names such as ``Gilphy 36.'' 2
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\2\ ``Gilphy 36'' is a trademark of Imphy, S.A.
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Certain martensitic precipitation-hardenable stainless steel is
also excluded from the scope of this order. This high-strength, ductile
stainless steel product is designated under the Unified Numbering
System (UNS) as S45500-grade steel, and contains, by weight, 11 to 13
percent chromium, and 7 to 10 percent nickel. Carbon, manganese,
silicon and molybdenum each comprise, by weight, 0.05 percent or less,
with phosphorus and sulfur each comprising, by weight, 0.03 percent or
less. This steel has copper, niobium, and titanium added to achieve
aging, and will exhibit yield strengths as high as 1700 Mpa and
ultimate tensile strengths as high as 1750 Mpa after aging, with
elongation percentages of 3 percent or less in 50 mm. It is generally
provided in thicknesses between 0.635 and 0.787 mm, and in widths of
25.4 mm. This product is most commonly used in the manufacture of
television tubes and is currently available under proprietary trade
names such as ``Durphynox 17.'' 3
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\3\ ``Durphynox 17'' is a trademark of Imphy, S.A.
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Finally, three specialty stainless steels typically used in certain
industrial blades and surgical and medical instruments are also
excluded from the scope of this order. These include stainless steel
strip in coils used in the production of textile cutting tools (e.g.,
carpet knives).4 This steel is similar to AISI grade 420 but
containing, by weight, 0.5 to 0.7 percent of molybdenum. The steel also
contains, by weight, carbon of between 1.0 and 1.1 percent, sulfur of
0.020 percent or less, and includes between 0.20 and 0.30 percent
copper and between 0.20 and 0.50 percent cobalt. This steel is sold
under proprietary names such as ``GIN4 Mo.'' The second excluded
stainless steel strip in coils is similar to AISI 420-J2 and contains,
by weight, carbon of between 0.62 and 0.70 percent, silicon of between
0.20 and 0.50 percent, manganese of between 0.45 and 0.80 percent,
phosphorus of no more than 0.025 percent and sulfur of no more than
0.020 percent. This steel has a carbide density on average of 100
carbide particles per 100 square microns. An example of this product is
``GIN5'' steel. The third specialty steel has a chemical composition
similar to AISI 420 F, with carbon of between 0.37 and 0.43 percent,
molybdenum of between 1.15 and 1.35 percent, but lower manganese of
between 0.20 and 0.80 percent, phosphorus of no more than 0.025
percent, silicon of between 0.20 and 0.50 percent, and sulfur of no
more than 0.020 percent. This product is supplied with a hardness of
more than Hv 500 guaranteed after customer processing, and is supplied
as, for example, ``GIN6''. 5
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\4\ This list of uses is illustrative and provided for
descriptive purposes only.
\5\ ``GIN4 Mo,'' ``GIN5'' and ``GIN6'' are the proprietary
grades of Hitachi Metals America, Ltd.
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Antidumping Duty Orders
On July 19, 1999, the International Trade Commission (the
Commission) notified the Department of its final determination pursuant
to section 735(b)(1)(A)(i) of the Tariff Act that an industry in the
United States is materially injured by reason of less-than-fair-value
imports of subject merchandise from Germany. Therefore, in accordance
with section 736(a)(1) of the Tariff Act, the Department will direct
Customs officers to assess, upon further advice by the Department,
antidumping duties equal to the amount by which the normal value of the
merchandise exceeds the export price (or constructed export price) of
the merchandise for all relevant entries of stainless steel sheet and
strip in coils from Germany. These antidumping duties will be assessed
on all unliquidated entries of stainless steel sheet and strip in coils
from Germany entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on
or after January 4, 1999, the date on which the Department published
its notice of preliminary determination in the Federal Register (64 FR
92). On or after the date of publication of this notice 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 estimated weighted-average antidumping duty
margins as noted below. The ``All Others'' rate applies to all
exporters of subject stainless steel sheet and strip in coils not
specifically listed. The revised weighted-average dumping margins are
as follows:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Weighted-
average
Exporter/manufacturer margin
(percent)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Krupp Thyssen Nirosta GmbH................................. 25.37
All Others................................................. 25.37
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This notice constitutes the antidumping duty order with respect to
stainless steel sheet and strip in coils from Germany. Interested
parties may contact the Department's 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 section 736(a) of the
Tariff Act of 1930, as amended.
Dated: July 21, 1999.
Bernard T. Carreau,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 99-19125 Filed 7-26-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
