[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 210 (Thursday, October 29, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68560-68561]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-23923]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-201-845]
Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Duty Investigation on Sugar
From Mexico: Final Results of the 2017-2018 Administrative Review
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Commerce) continues to find that
the respondents selected for individual examination were in compliance
with the Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Duty Investigation on
Sugar from Mexico (AD Agreement), as amended on June 30, 2017,
(collectively, amended AD Agreement), during the period of review (POR)
from December 1, 2017 through November 30, 2018, and that the amended
AD Agreement is meeting the statutory requirements under sections
734(c) and (d) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act).
DATES: Applicable October 29, 2020.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sally C. Gannon or David Cordell,
Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S.
Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC
20230; telephone: (202) 482-0162 or (202) 482-0408, respectively.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On February 6, 2020, Commerce published the Preliminary Results of
this administrative review.\1\ On February 20, 2020, Commerce issued a
second supplemental questionnaire to the respondents, Ingenio
P[aacute]nuco, S.A.P.I. de C.V. (P[aacute]nuco) and Ingenio Adolfo
L[oacute]pez Mateos S.A. de C.V. and its affiliates \2\ (Grupo
PIASA).\3\ P[aacute]nuco and Grupo PIASA each filed responses on March
20, 2020.\4\ On March 6, 2020, the American Sugar Coalition and its
Members (collectively, ASC),\5\ the petitioners in this case, requested
a hearing, which they later withdrew.\6\ On June 24, 2020, Commerce set
the briefing schedule for the final results of this review.\7\ On July
6, 2020, both the respondents and ASC filed briefs.\8\ On July 13,
2020, the respondents a filed rebuttal brief.\9\
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\1\ See Suspension Agreement on Sugar From Mexico; 2018
Administrative Review of the Agreement Suspending the Antidumping
Duty Investigation on Sugar From Mexico (as Amended), 85 FR 6894
(February 6, 2020) (Preliminary Results).
\2\ Ingenio Adolfo L[oacute]pez Mateos, S.A. de C.V. and its
affiliates Ingenio Tres Valles, S.A. de C.V. and Piasa Ingenio Plan
de San Luis, S.A. de C.V. (collectively, Grupo PIASA).
\3\ See Letters to P[aacute]nuco and Grupo PIASA, ``Agreement
Suspending the Antidumping Duty Investigation on Sugar from Mexico:
2018 Administrative Review--Second Supplemental Questionnaire,''
dated February 20, 2020.
\4\ See ``Sugar from Mexico--Grupo PIASA's Second Supplemental
Questionnaire Response,'' and ``Sugar from Mexico--Panuco's
Supplemental Questionnaire Response,'' both dated March 20, 2020.
\5\ The Members of the ASC are as follows: American Sugar Cane
League, American Sugarbeet Growers Association, American Sugar
Refining, Inc., Florida Sugar Cane League, Rio Grande Valley Sugar
Growers, Inc., Sugar Cane Growers Cooperative of Florida, and the
United States Beet Sugar Association.
\6\ See Petitioners' Letter, ``Sugar from Mexico: Request for
Hearing,'' dated March 6, 2020; see also ``Sugar from Mexico:
Withdrawal of Request for a Hearing,'' dated July 16, 2020.
\7\ See Memorandum, ``Establishment of Briefing Schedule for the
2017-2018 Administrative Reviews of the Agreement Suspending the
Antidumping Investigation on Sugar from Mexico and the Agreement
Suspending the Countervailing Duty Investigation on Sugar from
Mexico,'' dated June 24, 2020.
\8\ See C[aacute]mara Nacional de Las Industrias Azucarera y
Alcoholera (C[aacute]mara) Case Brief, ``Sugar from Mexico--Case
Brief'' and ASC Case Brief, ``Case Brief filed by the American Sugar
Coalition and its Members,'' dated July 6, 2020. Note that
C[aacute]mara's case brief was in the form of a letter in lieu of a
case brief in which C[aacute]mara argued that Commerce ``should
continue to find that the Mexican sugar industry is in full
compliance with the AD Agreement.''
\9\ See Rebuttal brief filed by C[aacute]mara, ``Sugar from
Mexico--Rebuttal Brief'' (July 13, 2020).
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On April 24, 2020, Commerce tolled all deadlines in administrative
reviews by 50 days.\10\ On July 14, 2020, Commerce extended the
deadline for the final results of this review by 30 days.\11\ On July
21, 2020, Commerce tolled all deadlines in administrative reviews by an
additional 60 days.\12\ As a result, the final results of this
administrative review are due no later than October 23, 2020.
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\10\ See Memorandum to the Record, from Jeffrey I. Kessler,
``Tolling of Deadlines for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty
Administrative Reviews in Response to Operational Adjustments Due to
COVID-19,'' dated April 24, 2020.
\11\ See Memorandum to Joseph A. Laroski Jr., Deputy Assistant
Secretary for Policy & Negotiations, ``Extension of Deadlines for
Final Results of the Administrative Review of the Agreement
Suspending the Antidumping Duty Investigation on Sugar from Mexico
and for Final Results of the Administrative Review of the Agreement
Suspending the Countervailing Duty Investigation on Sugar from
Mexico,'' dated July 14, 2020.
\12\ See Memorandum to the Record, from Jeffrey I. Kessler,
``Tolling of Deadlines for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty
Administrative Reviews,'' dated July 21, 2020.
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For its final analysis, Commerce considered briefs from interested
parties that commented on the Preliminary Results.
Scope of Amended AD Agreement
The product covered by this amended AD Agreement is raw and refined
sugar of all polarimeter readings derived from sugar cane or sugar
beets.
Merchandise covered by this amended AD Agreement is typically
imported under the following headings of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule
of the United States (HTSUS): 1701.12.1000, 1701.12.5000, 1701.13.1000,
1701.13.5000, 1701.14.1000, 1701.14.1020, 1701.14.1040,1701.14.5000,
1701.91.1000, 1701.91.3000, 1701.99.1010, 1701.99.1015, 1701.99.1017,
1701.99.1025, 1701.99.1050, 1701.99.5010,
1701.99.5015,170.99.5017,1701.99.5025, 1701.99.5050, 1702.90.4000 and
1703.10.3000. The tariff classification is provided for convenience and
customs purposes; however, the written description of the scope of this
amended AD Agreement is dispositive.
A full description of the scope of the order is contained in the
Issues and Decision Memorandum.\13\
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\13\ See Memorandum to Jeffrey I. Kessler, Assistant Secretary
for Enforcement and Compliance, from Joseph A. Laroski, Jr., Deputy
Assistant Secretary for Policy & Negotiations, ``Issues and Decision
Memorandum for the Final Results of the Administrative Review of the
Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Duty Investigation on Sugar
from Mexico, for the period December 1, 2017 through November 30,
2018,'' dated concurrently, and hereby adopted by, this notice
(Issues and Decision Memorandum). Commerce notes it has added the
following HTSUS codes to the scope: 1701.14.1020, 1701.14.1040,
1701.99.1015, 1701.99.1017, 1701.99.5015, and 1701.99.5017. See
footnote 2 of the Issues and Decision Memorandum for a full
explanation.
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[[Page 68561]]
Analysis
Commerce continues to find, based on record evidence, that the
selected respondents, P[aacute]nuco and Grupo PIASA, were in compliance
with the terms of the amended AD Agreement \14\ during the POR,
including the polarity testing requirements and reference price
provisions. We also determine that the amended AD Agreement is
preventing price suppression or undercutting and can be effectively
monitored, and there have been no violations by the selected
respondents of the amended AD Agreement during the POR.
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\14\ See Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Duty Investigation
of Sugar from Mexico, 79 FR 78039 (December 29, 2014) and Sugar From
Mexico: Amendment to the Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Duty
Investigation, 82 FR 31945 (July 11, 2017) (AD Amendment).
Consistent with a ruling from the Court of International Trade,
Commerce published in the Federal Register a notice of the
termination of the 2017 AD Amendment (which was in effect during
period of review), with an applicable date of December 7, 2019. See
Sugar from Mexico: Notice of Termination of Amendment to the
Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Duty Investigation, 84 FR 67711
(December 11, 2019).
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The issues raised in the case and rebuttal briefs are addressed in
the accompanying Issues and Decision Memorandum and business
proprietary memorandum.\15\ The issues are identified in the Appendix
to this notice. The Issues and 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. In addition, a complete version of the Issues and
Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly on the internet at http://trade.gov/enforcement/frn/index.html. The signed Issues and Decision
Memorandum and electronic versions of the Issues and Decision
Memorandum are identical in content.
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\15\ See Issues and Decision Memorandum; see also Memorandum to
the File from David Cordell, through Sally C. Gannon, Director for
Bilateral Agreements, ``Proprietary Discussion of Issues for the
Final Results of the Administrative Review of the Agreement
Suspending the Antidumping Duty Investigation on Sugar from Mexico,
for the period December 1, 2017 through November 30, 2018,'' dated
concurrently and hereby adopted by this notice.
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Notification Regarding Administrative Protective Order
This notice also serves as a reminder to parties subject to
administrative protective order (APO) of their responsibility
concerning the return or destruction of proprietary information
disclosed under APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305(a)(3). Timely
written notification of the return or destruction of APO materials or
conversion to judicial protective order is hereby requested. Failure to
comply with the regulations and terms of an APO is a sanctionable
violation.
Notification to Interested Parties
We are issuing and publishing these results of review in accordance
with sections 751(a)(l) and 777(i)(l) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.213 and
19 CFR 351.221(b)(5).
Dated: October 21, 2020.
Jeffrey I. Kessler,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix
Issues and Decision Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Scope of the Agreement
III. Background
IV. Discussion of the Issues
Issue 1: Alleged Possible Violations of the Amended AD Agreement
Certain Sales in the Home Market
Sales for Home Market Calculation
Issue 2: Status of the Amended AD Agreement.
V. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2020-23923 Filed 10-28-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P