[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 200 (Thursday, October 15, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65358-65361]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-22815]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-485-809]
Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet From Romania: Preliminary Affirmative
Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines
that common alloy aluminum sheet (aluminum sheet) from Romania is
being, or is likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair
value (LTFV). The period of investigation is January 1, 2019 through
December 31, 2019. Interested parties are invited to comment on this
preliminary determination.
DATES: Applicable October 15, 2020.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Krisha Hill, AD/CVD Operations, Office
IV, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington,
DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-4037.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
This preliminary determination is made in accordance with section
733(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Commerce
published the notice of initiation of this investigation
[[Page 65359]]
on April 7, 2020.\1\ On July 29, 2020, Commerce postponed the
preliminary determination in this investigation and the revised
deadline is now October 6, 2020.\2\ For a complete description of the
events that followed the initiation of this investigation, see the
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\3\ A list of topics included in the
Preliminary Decision Memorandum is included as Appendix II to this
notice. 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 https://access.trade.gov. In
addition, a complete version of the 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.
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\1\ See Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet From Bahrain, Brazil,
Croatia, Egypt, Germany, Greece, India, Indonesia, Italy, Republic
of Korea, Oman, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain
Taiwan and the Republic of Turkey: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-
Value Investigations, 85 FR 19444 (April 7, 2020) (Initiation
Notice).
\2\ See Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet from Bahrain, Brazil,
Croatia, Egypt, Germany, Greece, India, Indonesia, Italy, Republic
of Korea, Oman, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain,
Taiwan, and the Republic of Turkey: Postponement of Preliminary
Determinations in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations, 85 FR
45576 (July 29, 2020).
\3\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary
Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation of Common
Alloy Aluminum Sheet from Romania'' dated concurrently with, and
hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation
The products covered by this investigation are common alloy
aluminum sheet from Romania. For a complete description of the scope of
this investigation, see Appendix I.
Scope Comments
In accordance with the preamble to Commerce's regulations,\4\ the
Initiation Notice set aside a period of time for parties to raise
issues regarding product coverage (i.e., scope).\5\ Certain interested
parties commented on the scope of the investigation as it appeared in
the Initiation Notice. For a summary of the product coverage comments
and rebuttal responses submitted to the record for this preliminary
determination and accompanying discussion and analysis of all comments
timely received, see the Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum.\6\
Commerce is preliminarily modifying the scope language as it appeared
in the Initiation Notice. See the revised scope in Appendix I to this
notice.
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\4\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule,
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997).
\5\ See Initiation Notice.
\6\ See Memorandum, ``Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet from Bahrain,
Brazil, Croatia, Egypt, Germany, Greece, India, Indonesia, Italy,
Republic of Korea, Oman, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, South Africa,
Spain, Taiwan, and Turkey: Scope Comments Decision Memorandum for
the Preliminary Determinations'' (Preliminary Scope Decision
Memorandum), dated concurrently with this notice.
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Methodology
Commerce is conducting this investigation in accordance with
section 731 of the Act. Pursuant to sections 776(a) and (b) of the Act,
Commerce has preliminarily relied upon facts otherwise available, with
adverse inferences, for Alro, SA and Vimetco Group.\7\ For a full
description of the methodology underlying the preliminary
determination, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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\7\ Alro, SA noted that its name is ``Alro, SA'' rather than
``Alro, S.A.'' as stated in the Initiation Notice. See Alro, SA's
Letter, ``Common Alloy Aluminum Sheets from Romania, A-385-809;
Clarification of Company Names,'' April 8, 2020.
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All-Others Rate
Sections 733(d)(1)(ii) and 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act provide that in
the preliminary determination, Commerce shall determine an estimated
all-others rate for all exporters and producers not individually
examined. This rate shall be an amount equal to the weighted average of
the estimated weighted-average dumping margins established for
exporters and producers individually investigated, excluding any zero
and de minimis margins, and any margins determined entirely under
section 776 of the Act. Pursuant to section 735(c)(5)(B) of the Act, if
the estimated weighted-average dumping margins established for all
exporters and producers individually examined are zero, de minimis or
determined based entirely on facts otherwise available, Commerce may
use any reasonable method to establish the estimated weighted-average
dumping margin for all other producers or exporters.
Commerce has preliminarily determined the estimated dumping margins
for each of the individually examined respondents (i.e., Alro, SA and
Vimetco Group) entirely under section 776 of the Act. Consequently,
pursuant to section 735(c)(5)(B) of the Act, Commerce's normal practice
under these circumstances has been to calculate the all-others rate as
a simple average of the alleged dumping margins from the petition.
However, there is only one dumping margin in the petition for this
investigation. Therefore, we used that rate as the All Others rate. For
a full description of the methodology underlying Commerce's analysis,
see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
Preliminary Determination
Commerce preliminarily determines that the following estimated
dumping margins exist:
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\8\ On April 8, 2020, Alro, SA and its affiliate Vimetco
Management Romania, SRL, notified Commerce that ``Vimetco Group'' is
not a legal entity but that the name reflects a collection of
companies including Alro, SA. Additionally, Alro, SA noted that its
name is ``Alro, SA'' rather than ``Alro, S.A.'' as stated in the
Initiation Notice. See Alro, SA's Letter, ``Common Alloy Aluminum
Sheets from Romania, A-385-809; Clarification of Company Names,''
April 8, 2020. Given that Vimetco Group is not a legal entity but
refers to a group of companies in which Alro SA is the only
producer, seller, and exporter of aluminum sheet, we have assigned
the dumping rate to Alro, SA.
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Estimated
dumping
Exporter/producer margin
(percent)
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Alro, SA \8\................................................ 83.94
All Others.................................................. 12.51
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Suspension of Liquidation
In accordance with section 733(d)(2) of the Act, Commerce will
direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to suspend liquidation
of entries of subject merchandise, as described in Appendix I, entered,
or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of
publication of this notice in the Federal Register. Further, pursuant
to section 733(d)(1)(B) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(d), Commerce will
instruct CBP to require a cash deposit equal to the estimated dumping
margin or the estimated all-others rate, as follows: (1) The cash
deposit rate for the respondents listed above will be equal to the
company-specific estimated dumping margin determined in this
preliminary determination; (2) if the exporter is not a respondent
identified above, but the producer is, then the cash deposit rate will
be equal to the company-specific estimated dumping margin established
for that producer of the subject merchandise; and (3) the cash deposit
rate for all other producers and exporters will be equal to the all-
others estimated dumping margin. These suspension of liquidation
instructions will remain in effect until further notice.
Disclosure
Commerce intends to disclose to interested parties any calculations
[[Page 65360]]
performed in connection with this preliminary determination within five
days of its public announcement or, if there is no public announcement,
within five days of the date of publication of this notice in
accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).
Verification
Because the examined respondents in this investigation did not
provide information requested by Commerce, and Commerce preliminarily
determines that each of the examined respondents have been
uncooperative, we will not conduct verification.
Public Comment
Case briefs or other written comments on non-scope issues may be
submitted to the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance no
later than 21 days after the date of publication of the preliminary
determination.\9\ Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in case
briefs, may be submitted no later than seven days after the deadline
date for case briefs.\10\ The deadlines for submitting case and
rebuttal briefs on scope issues are in the Preliminary Scope Decision
Memorandum.\11\ Note that Commerce has temporarily modified certain of
its requirements for serving documents containing business proprietary
information, until further notice.\12\ Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2)
and (d)(2), parties who submit case briefs or rebuttal briefs in this
investigation 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.
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\9\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(1)(i); and 19 CFR 351.303 (for general
filing requirements). Commerce has exercised its discretion under 19
CFR 351.309(c)(1)(i) to alter the time limit for submission of case
briefs.
\10\ See 19 CFR 351.309; and 19 CFR 351.303 (for general filing
requirements).
\11\ See Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum.
\12\ See Temporary Rule Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements
Due to COVID-19, 85 FR 17006 (March 26, 2020) (Temporary Rule); and
Temporary Rule Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements Due to COVID-
19; Extension of Effective Period, 85 FR 41363 (July 10, 2020).
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Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), interested parties who wish to
request a hearing, limited to issues raised in the case and rebuttal
briefs, must submit a written request to the Assistant Secretary for
Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. Department of Commerce, within 30 days
after the date of publication of this notice. Requests should contain
the party's name, address, and telephone number, the number of
participants, whether any participant is a foreign national, and a list
of the issues to be discussed. If a request for a hearing is made,
Commerce intends to hold the hearing at a time and date to be
determined. Parties should confirm by telephone the date and time of
the hearing two days before the scheduled date of the hearing.
Final Determination
Section 735(a)(2) of the Act provides that a final determination
may be postponed until not later than 135 days after the date of the
publication of the preliminary determination if, in the event of an
affirmative preliminary determination, a request for such postponement
is made by exporters who account for a significant proportion of
exports of the subject merchandise, or in the event of a negative
preliminary determination, a request for such postponement is made by
the petitioner. While the petitioners requested postponement of the
final determination, the preliminary determination is affirmative, and
no exporter requested postponement of the final determination. In such
a scenario, section 735(a)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(b)(1)
provide that Commerce will issue the final determination within 75 days
after the date of its preliminary determination. Accordingly, Commerce
will make its final determination no later than 75 days after the
signature date of this preliminary determination.
International Trade Commission Notification
In accordance with section 733(f) of the Act, Commerce will notify
the International Trade Commission (ITC) of its preliminary
determination. If the final determination is affirmative, the ITC will
determine before the later of 120 days after the date of this
preliminary determination or 45 days after the final determination
whether these imports are materially injuring, or threaten material
injury to, the U.S. industry.
Notification to Interested Parties
This determination is issued and published in accordance with
sections 733(f) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(c).
Dated: October 6, 2020.
Jeffrey I. Kessler,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix I--Scope of the Investigation
The products covered by this investigation are common alloy
aluminum sheet, which is a flat-rolled aluminum product having a
thickness of 6.3 mm or less, but greater than 0.2 mm, in coils or
cut-to-length, regardless of width. Common alloy sheet within the
scope of this investigation includes both not clad aluminum sheet,
as well as multi-alloy, clad aluminum sheet. With respect to not
clad aluminum sheet, common alloy sheet is manufactured from a 1XXX-
, 3XXX-, or 5XXX-series alloy as designated by the Aluminum
Association. With respect to multi-alloy, clad aluminum sheet,
common alloy sheet is produced from a 3XXX-series core, to which
cladding layers are applied to either one or both sides of the core.
The use of a proprietary alloy or non-proprietary alloy that is not
specifically registered by the Aluminum Association as a discrete
1XXX-, 3XXX-, or 5XXX-series alloy, but that otherwise has a
chemistry that is consistent with these designations, does not
remove an otherwise in-scope product from the scope.
Common alloy sheet may be made to ASTM specification B209-14 but
can also be made to other specifications. Regardless of
specification, however, all common alloy sheet meeting the scope
description is included in the scope. Subject merchandise includes
common alloy sheet that has been further processed in a third
country, including but not limited to annealing, tempering,
painting, varnishing, trimming, cutting, punching, and/or slitting,
or any other processing that would not otherwise remove the
merchandise from the scope of this investigation if performed in the
country of manufacture of the common alloy sheet.
Excluded from the scope of this investigation is aluminum can
stock, which is suitable for use in the manufacture of aluminum
beverage cans, lids of such cans, or tabs used to open such cans.
Aluminum can stock is produced to gauges that range from 0.200 mm to
0.292 mm, and has an H-19, H-41, H-48, H-39, or H-391 temper. In
addition, aluminum can stock has a lubricant applied to the flat
surfaces of the can stock to facilitate its movement through
machines used in the manufacture of beverage cans. Aluminum can
stock is properly classified under Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the
United States (HTSUS) subheadings 7606.12.3045 and 7606.12.3055.
Where the nominal and actual measurements vary, a product is
within the scope if application of either the nominal or actual
measurement would place it within the scope based on the definitions
set for the above.
Common alloy sheet is currently classifiable under HTSUS
subheadings 7606.11.3060, 7606.11.6000, 7606.12.3096, 7606.12.6000,
7606.91.3095, 7606.91.6095, 7606.92.3035, and 7606.92.6095. Further,
merchandise that falls within the scope of this investigation may
also be entered into the United States under HTSUS subheadings
7606.11.3030, 7606.12.3015, 7606.12.3025, 7606.12.3035,
7606.12.3091, 7606.91.3055, 7606.91.6055, 7606.92.3025,
7606.92.6055, 7607.11.9090. Although the HTSUS subheadings are
provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written
description of the scope of this investigation is dispositive.
Appendix II--List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum
I. Summary
[[Page 65361]]
II. Background
III. Period of Investigation
IV. Scope of Investigation
V. Scope Comments
VI. Application of Facts Available and Use of Adverse Inferences
VII. All-Others Rate
VIII. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2020-22815 Filed 10-14-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P