[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 131 (Monday, July 9, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31728-31729]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-14634]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[C-549-836]
Rubber Bands From Thailand: Preliminary Negative Countervailing
Duty Determination and Alignment of Final Determination With Final
Antidumping Duty Determination
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines
that countervailable subsidies are not being provided to producers and
exporters of rubber bands from Thailand for the period of investigation
of January 1, 2017, through December 31, 2017. Interested parties are
invited to comment on this preliminary determination.
DATES: Applicable July 9, 2018.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Emily Halle or Shanah Lee, AD/CVD
Operations, Office III, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone 202-482-0176 or 202-482-6386,
respectively.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
This preliminary determination is made in accordance with section
703(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). On February 20,
2018, we initiated a countervailing duty (CVD) investigation of rubber
bands from Thailand.\1\ On April 12, 2018, in accordance with section
703(c)(1)(A) of the Act, we postponed the preliminary determination of
this investigation to July 2, 2018.\2\
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\1\ See Rubber Bands from Thailand, the People's Republic of
China, and Sri Lanka: Initiation of Countervailing Duty
Investigations, 83 FR 8429 (February 27, 2018) (Initiation Notice).
\2\ See Rubber Bands from Thailand and the People's Republic of
China: Postponement of Preliminary Determinations in the
Countervailing Duty Investigations, 83 FR 15789 (April 12, 2018).
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For a complete description of the events that followed the
initiation of this investigation, see the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum.\3\ A list of topics discussed in the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum is included as an Appendix 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, and is available to all
parties in the Central Records Unit, room B8024 of the main Department
of Commerce building. In addition, a complete version of the
Preliminary Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/. The signed and electronic versions of the
Preliminary Decision Memorandum are identical in content.
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\3\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary
Negative Countervailing Duty Determination and Alignment of Final
Determination with Final Antidumping Duty Determination of Citric
Acid and Certain Citrate Salts from Thailand,'' dated concurrently
with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision
Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation
The products subject to this investigation are rubber bands from
Thailand. For a complete description of the scope of this
investigation, see Appendix I.
Methodology
Commerce is conducting this investigation in accordance with
section 701 of the Act. For each of the subsidy programs found
countervailable, Commerce preliminarily determines that there is a
subsidy, i.e., a financial contribution by an ``authority'' that gives
rise to a benefit to the recipient, and that the subsidy is
specific.\4\
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\4\ See sections 771(5)(B) and (D) of the Act regarding
financial contribution; section 771(5)(E) of the Act regarding
benefit; and section 771(5A) of the Act regarding specificity.
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Alignment
As noted in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, in accordance with
section 705(a)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(b)(4)(i), we are
aligning the final CVD determination in this investigation with the
final determination in the companion antidumping duty (AD)
investigation of rubber bands based on a request made by the
petitioner.\5\ Consequently, the final CVD determination will be issued
on the same date as the final AD determination, which is currently
scheduled to be issued no later than November 13, 2018, unless
postponed.\6\
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\5\ The petitioner in this investigation is Alliance Rubber Co.
See Letter from the petitioner, ``Petition for the Imposition of
Antidumping and Countervailing Duties on Rubber Bands from Thailand
and China--Petitioner's Request for Postponement of the Preliminary
Determinations,'' dated March 27, 2018.
\6\ The AD preliminary determination was postponed to no later
than August 29, 2018, see Rubber Bands from the People's Republic of
China and Thailand: Postponement of Preliminary Determinations in
the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations, 83 FR 29748 (June 26,
2018). Therefore, the AD final determination is currently due for
signature no later than Monday, November 12, 2018, which is a
federal holiday. Commerce's practice dictates that where a deadline
falls on a weekend or federal holiday, the appropriate deadline is
the next business day (see Notice of Clarification: Application of
``Next Business Day'' Rule for Administrative Determination
Deadlines Pursuant to the Tariff Act of 1930, As Amended, 70 FR
24533 (May 10, 2005). As such, the AD final determination signature
date rolls to Tuesday, November 13, 2018.
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Preliminary Determination
For this preliminary determination, Commerce calculated de minimis
estimated countervailable subsidies for all individually examined
producers/exporters of the subject merchandise. Consistent with section
703(b)(4)(A) of the Act, Commerce has disregarded the de minimis rates.
Commerce preliminarily determines that the following estimated
countervailable subsidy rates exist:
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Company Subsidy rate (percent)
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Liang Hah Heng International Rubber Co., 0.23 (de minimis).
Ltd.
U. Yong Industry Co., Ltd................. 0.37 (de minimis).
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Consistent with section 703(d) of the Act, Commerce has not
calculated an estimated weighted-average subsidy rate for all other
producers/exporters because it has not made an affirmative preliminary
determination.
Suspension of Liquidation
Because Commerce preliminarily determines that no countervailable
subsidies are being provided to the production or exportation of
subject merchandise, Commerce will not direct U.S. Customs and Border
Protection to suspend liquidation of any such entries.
[[Page 31729]]
Public Comment
Interested parties may submit case and rebuttal briefs, as well as
request a hearing. Case briefs or other written comments may be
submitted to the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance no
later than seven days after the date on which the last verification
report is issued in this investigation. Rebuttal briefs, limited to
issues raised in case briefs, may be submitted no later than five days
after the deadline date for case briefs.\7\ 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.\8\ This summary should be
limited to five pages total, including footnotes.
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\7\ See 19 CFR 351.309; see also 19 CFR 351.303 (for general
filing requirements).
\8\ See 19 CFR .309(c)(2) and (d)(2).
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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 in the Federal Register
via ACCESS. Hearing 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 the U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230, at a time and date to be determined.
Prior to the date of the hearing, Commerce will contact all parties
that submitted case or rebuttal briefs to determine if they wish to
participate in the hearing. Commerce will then provide a hearing
schedule to the parties prior to the hearing and only those parties
listed on the schedule may present issues raised in their briefs.
Parties should confirm by telephone the date, time, and location of the
hearing two days before the scheduled date.
Electronically filed documents must be received successfully in
their entirety by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time,\9\ on the due dates
established above.
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\9\ See 19 CFR 351.303(b)(1).
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International Trade Commission (ITC) Notification
In accordance with section 703(f) of the Act, we will notify the
ITC of our determination. In addition, Commerce will make available to
the ITC all non-privileged and non-proprietary information relating to
this investigation. Commerce will allow the ITC access to all
privileged and business proprietary information in the files, provided
the ITC confirms that it will not disclose such information, either
publicly or under an APO, without the written consent of the Assistant
Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Pursuant to section 705(b)(2) of the Act, if Commerce's final
determination is affirmative, the ITC will make its final determination
before the later of 120 days after the date of this preliminary
determination, or 45 days after Commerce's final determination.
Notification to Interested Parties
This determination is issued and published pursuant to sections
703(f) and 777(i) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(c).
Disclosure
Commerce intends to disclose its calculations and analysis
performed to interested parties in this preliminary determination
within five days of its public announcement in accordance with 19 CFR
351.224(b).
Verification
As provided in section 782(i)(1) of the Act, Commerce intends to
verify the information relied upon in making its final determination.
Dated: July 2, 2018.
Gary Taverman,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty
Operations performing the non-exclusive functions and duties of the
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix I--Scope of the Investigation
The products subject to this investigation are bands made of
vulcanized rubber, with a flat length, as actually measured end-to-
end by the band lying flat, no less than \1/2\ inch and no greater
than 10 inches; with a width, which measures the dimension
perpendicular to the length, actually of at least 3/64 inch and no
greater than 2 inches; and a wall thickness actually from 0.020 inch
to 0.125 inch. Vulcanized rubber has been chemically processed into
a more durable material by the addition of sulfur or other
equivalent curatives or accelerators. Subject products are included
regardless of color or inclusion of printed material on the rubber
band's surface, including but not limited to, rubber bands with
printing on them, such as a product name, advertising, or slogan,
and printed material (e.g., a tag) fastened to the rubber band by an
adhesive or another temporary type of connection. The scope includes
vulcanized rubber bands which are contained or otherwise exist in
various forms and packages, such as, without limitation, vulcanized
rubber bands included within a desk accessory set or other type of
set or package, and vulcanized rubber band balls. The scope excludes
products that consist of an elastomer loop and durable tag all-in-
one, and bands that are being used at the time of import to fasten
an imported product. Merchandise covered by this investigation is
currently classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United
States (HTSUS) under subheading 4016.99.3510. Merchandise covered by
the scope may also enter under HTSUS subheading 4016.99.6050. While
the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs
purposes, the written description of the scope of the investigation
is dispositive.
Appendix II--List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope Comments
IV. Scope of the Investigation
V. Alignment
VI. Injury Test
VII. Subsidies Valuation
VIII. Use of Facts Otherwise Available and Adverse Inferences
IX. Analysis of Programs
X. Verification
XI. Calculation of the All Others Rate
XII. Conclusion
[FR Doc. 2018-14634 Filed 7-6-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P