Notice of Amended Preliminary Determinations of Sales at Less Than Fair Value: Antidumping Duty Investigations of Pure and Alloy Magnesium From the Russian Federation and Pure Magnesium From Ukraine

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-821-805, A-821-806, A-823-806]

Notice of Amended Preliminary Determinations of Sales at Less

Than Fair Value: Antidumping Duty Investigations of Pure and Alloy

Magnesium From the Russian Federation and Pure Magnesium From Ukraine

AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration,

Commerce Department.

EFFECTIVE DATE: February 8, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dorothy Tomaszewski, Mark Wells, or

Erik Warga, Office of Antidumping Investigations, Import

Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of

Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C.,

20230; telephone (202) 482-0631, 482-3003 or 482-0922.

Scopes of Investigations

These investigations cover pure and alloy primary magnesium. The

scopes are fully described in the preliminary determinations (see

Notice of Preliminary Determinations of Sales at Less Than fair Value:

Pure and Alloy Magnesium from the Russian Federation (59 FR 55427,

November 7, 1994) and Notice of Preliminary Determination of Sales at

Less Than Fair Value: Pure Magnesium from Ukraine (59 FR 55420,

November 7, 1994)).

Case History

On October 27, 1994, the Department of Commerce (``the

Department'') made its affirmative preliminary determinations of sales

at less than fair value in the above-cited investigations concerning

subject merchandise from Russia and Ukraine. The petitioners, on

November 14, 1994, alleged that the Department made several ministerial

errors in those preliminary determinations and requested that the

Department correct these ministerial errors accordingly.

On December 22, 1994, the Department found that the petitioners'

allegations relating to the use of the initiation margins, as

recalculated by the Department, as best information

[[Page 7520]] available (``BIA'') for non-cooperative respondents and

in the weighted-average calculations of the ``all others'' rate,

involved calculation errors that were ministerial in nature. However,

the Department determined that these errors did not warrant correction

since such correction did not result in a combined change of at least 5

absolute percentage points in, and no less than 25 percent of, any of

the original preliminary dumping margins--the threshold for amending

our preliminary determination.

On January 4, 1995, the petitioners contested the Department's

finding, stating that the ministerial errors did, in fact, result in a

combined change of at least 5 absolute percentage points in, and no

less than 25 percent of, any of the original preliminary dumping

margins and, therefore, require correction in amended preliminary

determinations. The petitioners are correct.

Amendment of Preliminary Determinations

The Department is amending its preliminary determinations. Set

forth below is the basis for the amended preliminary determinations

concerning the recalculation of the initiation margin as it relates to

both the BIA rate for non-cooperative respondents and the ``all

others'' rate.

It is not our normal practice to amend preliminary determinations

since these determinations only establish estimated margins, which are

subject to verification and which may change in the final

determination. However, the Department has stated that it will amend a

preliminary determination to correct for significant ministerial

errors. (See Amendment to Preliminary Determination of Sales at Less

Than Fair Value: Certain Welded Stainless Steel Pipes from Taiwan, 57

FR 33492 (July 29, 1992)).

Russia

In the preliminary determinations for both pure and alloy magnesium

from Russia, the highest margins for each class or kind (i.e., pure or

alloy) of subject merchandise in the petition, as recalculated by the

Department at initiation to account for errors in arithmetic and/or

methodology, were assigned as BIA for non-cooperative respondents. In

turn, the company-specific BIA margins were among the margins used in

calculating the ``all others'' rate. Certain factor values, based on

prices in the United States, were not included in the recalculation of

the petition margin at initiation because (1) petitioners failed to

follow the Department's established hierarchy with respect to factor

valuation, and (2) petitioners provided no basis for determining that

the United States values were representative of the appropriate

surrogate country values. Specifically, no value for factory overhead

was included in the constructed value calculation on which the

initiation margins for pure and alloy magnesium from Russia are based.

In addition, values for four inputs, fluorspar, magnesium chloride,

sodium chloride, and barium chloride, as well as a value for packing,

were not included in the initiation margin calculations. Therefore, the

petitioners argued that the Department's recalculations result in the

understatement of the margin assigned as BIA to non-cooperative

respondents and in the understatement of the margin used in calculating

the ``all others'' rate as well.

The Department considers the omission of certain factor values in

the recalculated margins from the petition to be ministerial errors.

Because correction of this error would result in a change of at least 5

absolute percentage points in, but not less than 25 percent of, the BIA

margins in the preliminary determinations for pure and alloy magnesium

from Russia, this error constitutes a significant ministerial error.

The omission of factory overhead has been corrected by applying the

Brazilian surrogate percentage value for factory overhead to the

petition's total cost of manufacture and the resulting figure was

included in the petition's margin calculation. Selling, general and

administrative (SG&A) expenses and profit in the petition's margin

calculations for pure and alloy magnesium from Russia were also

recalculated accordingly to account for factory overhead. In addition,

the Brazilian surrogate value for fluorspar as a flux additive was also

included in the revised margin assigned as BIA for non-cooperative

respondents and used in the calculation of the ``all others'' rate. The

petitioners requested that the missing factor values be based on U.S.

experience reported in the petition. However, the factor values in the

petition were already determined by the Department to be inappropriate.

Accordingly, the Department is applying the surrogate values, which

more reasonably reflect the value of these factors in the production

process.

No values were included for magnesium chloride, barium chloride, or

sodium chloride since those factors were never considered in the

petition's margin calculations. In addition, packing could not be

valued since the petition provided no specific quantity data on the

factor for determining an appropriate unit value.

Ukraine

In the preliminary determination for pure magnesium from Ukraine,

the highest margin in the petition, as recalculated by the Department

at initiation to account for errors in arithmetic and/or methodology,

was assigned as BIA for non-cooperative respondents. In turn, the

company-specific BIA margins were among the margins used in calculating

the ``all others'' rate.

Furthermore, in calculating Gerald Metals' margin for pure

magnesium from Ukraine, the BIA margin, based on this recalculated

initiation margin, was applied to certain U.S. sales transactions of

subject merchandise produced by an uncooperative respondent,

Zaporozhye.

Certain factor values, based on prices in the United States, were

not included in the recalculation of the petition margin at initiation

because (1) petitioners failed to follow the Department's established

hierarchy with respect to factor valuation, and (2) petitioners

provided no basis for determining that the United States values were

representative of the appropriate surrogate country values.

Specifically, no values for factory overhead and two material inputs

used in the production of the subject merchandise were included in the

constructed value calculation on which the petition margin for pure

magnesium was based. Therefore, petitioners argued, the Department's

recalculation of the petition margin resulted in the understatement of

the margin assigned as BIA to non-cooperative respondents, in the

understatement of the ``all others'' rate, and in the understatement of

Gerald Metals' calculated margin.

The Department considers the omission of certain factor values in

the recalculated petition margin to be a ministerial error. Because

correction of this error would result in a change of at least 5

absolute percentage points in, but not less than 25 percent of, the BIA

margin in the preliminary determination for pure magnesium from

Ukraine, this error constitutes a significant ministerial error.

The ministerial error has been corrected by applying the percentage

value for factory overhead used in the preliminary determination margin

calculations (which was the factory overhead rate from the petition

because a surrogate value for factory overhead from either Indonesia or

Egypt could not be found) to the petition's total cost of

[[Page 7521]] manufacture and the resulting figure was added to the

constructed value in the petition's margin calculation. Selling,

general and administrative (SG&A) expenses and profit in the petition's

margin calculations for pure magnesium from Ukraine were also

recalculated accordingly to account for factory overhead. In addition,

the Indonesian surrogate value for one of the missing input values was

also figured in the revised margin calculation. The petitioners

requested that the missing material values be based on material values

originally reported in the petition. However, the petition's unit value

for one of the material inputs at issue was already determined by the

Department to be inappropriate. Accordingly, the Department determined

that the surrogate value for the factor more reasonably reflects the

value of the factor in the production process.

The other material input in question could not be valued since the

petition provided no specific quantity data or description of the

factor for determining an appropriate unit value.

Addenda to Preliminary Determinations

In our October 27, 1994, preliminary determinations in these

proceedings, we stated that we would impose company-specific duty

deposit rates on certain non-participating mandatory respondents whose

identities were business proprietary and thus could not be disclosed.

Subsequent to publication of those determinations, we were informed by

the U.S. Customs Service that it could not administer suspension-of-

liquidation instructions that involved unidentified companies.

Accordingly, we did not assign company-specific deposit rates to these

companies; instead, entries of merchandise sold by these companies are

subject to the ``All Others'' deposit rate.

Suspension of Liquidation

In accordance with section 733(d)(2) of the Act, the Department

will direct the U.S. Customs Service to continue to require cash

deposit or posting of bond on all entries of subject merchandise from

Russia and Ukraine for non-cooperative respondents and for ``all

others'' at the newly calculated rates, that are entered, or withdrawn

from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of

this notice in the Federal Register. The suspension-of-liquidation will

remain in effect until further notice. The revised company-specific BIA

margins for non-cooperative respondents and the ``all others'' rate as

well as Gerald Metals' revised margin for pure magnesium from Ukraine

are as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pure Alloy

magnesium magnesium

(percent) (percent)

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Russia:

F&S............................................. 100.25 153.65

W&O Bergmann.................................... 100.25 153.65

Derek Raphael & Co.............................. 100.25 153.65

Marco Trading................................... 100.25 153.65

Wogen Group..................................... 100.25 153.65

Alex............................................ 100.25 153.65

``All others''.................................. 94.30 153.65

Ukraine:

Gerald Metals................................... 83.32

Alusuisse-Lonza................................. 104.27

Derek Raphael................................... 104.27

Marco Trading................................... 104.27

Wogen Group..................................... 104.27

Alex............................................ 104.27

Mages........................................... 104.27

F&S............................................. 104.27

``All others''.................................. 99.81

------------------------------------------------------------------------

ITC Notification

In accordance with section 733(f) of the Act, we have notified the

ITC of the amended preliminary determinations. If our final

determinations are affirmative, the ITC will determine whether imports

of the subject merchandise are materially injuring, or threaten

material injury to, the U.S. industry, before the later of 120 days

after the date of the original preliminary determinations (October 27,

1994) or 45 days after our final determinations.

This notice is published pursuant to section 733(f) of the Act and

19 CFR 353.15(a)(4).

Dated: January 31, 1995.

Susan G. Esserman,

Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.

[FR Doc. 95-3133 Filed 2-7-95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P