Notice of Amended Preliminary Determination: Canned Pineapple Fruit From Thailand

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-549-813]

Notice of Amended Preliminary Determination: Canned Pineapple

Fruit From Thailand

AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S.

Department of Commerce.

EFFECTIVE DATE: February 22, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jennifer Katt or Michelle Frederick,

Office of Antidumping Investigations, Import Administration,

International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th

Street and Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone:

(202) 482-0498 or (202) 482-0186, respectively.

APPLICABLE STATUTE AND REGULATIONS: Unless otherwise indicated, all

citations to the statute and to the Department's regulations are

references to the provisions as they existed on December 31, 1994.

References to the Antidumping and Countervailing Duties: Notice of

Proposed Rulemaking and Request for Public Comments, 57 FR 1131

(January 10, 1992) (concerning correction of ministerial errors in a

preliminary determination) (``Proposed Regulations'') are provided

solely for further explanation of the Department's practice and

procedures with respect to correction of ministerial errors. Although

the Department has withdrawn the particular rulemaking proceeding

pursuant to which the Proposed Regulations were issued, the subject

matter of these regulations is being considered in connection with an

ongoing rulemaking proceeding which, among other things, is intended to

conform the Department's regulations to the Uruguay Round Agreements

Act. See 60 FR 80 (January 3, 1995).

AMENDED PRELIMINARY DETERMINATION: In accordance with section 733(b) of

the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), on January 4, 1995, the

Department of Commerce (the Department) made its preliminary

determination that canned pineapple fruit (CPF) from Thailand was being

sold at less than fair value (60 FR 2734, January 11, 1995). On January

10 and 13, 1995, we disclosed our calculations for the preliminary

determination to counsel for respondents, the Thai Public Pineapple

Company (TIPCO), Siam Agro Industry Pineapple and Others Public Co.,

Ltd. (SAICO), and Malee Sampran Factory Public Co., Ltd. (Malee), to

counsel to respondent Dole Food Company, Inc. and its affiliates, Dole

Packaged Foods Company and Dole Thailand, Inc. (collectively Dole) and

to counsel for the petitioners, respectively, pursuant to their

requests. On January 20, 1995, we received a submission from the

petitioners alleging a ministerial error in the Department's

preliminary determination calculations. (For specific details of this

allegation and our analysis of it, see Memorandum from Gary Taverman to

Barbara R. Stafford dated February 8, 1995.)

The petitioners alleged that the Department incorrectly included

movement expenses in its deductions for both direct and indirect

selling expenses for Dole's third country observations made on an ex-

warehouse or delivered basis.

We agree that the error alleged by the petitioners is a ministerial

error. This error constitutes a significant ministerial error within

the meaning of the Department's Proposed Regulations in that the

correction results in a difference between a dumping margin of de

minimis and a margin greater than de minimis. See section

353.15(g)(4)(ii) of the Department's Proposed Regulations (57 FR 1131,

January 10, 1992). Therefore, consistent with the Department's practice

with respect to the correction of ministerial errors, we are amending

Dole's preliminary dumping margin. The corrected dumping margin for

Dole is 0.78 percent; as a result the ``All Others'' rate is now 3.92

percent.

Suspension of Liquidation

We are directing the Customs Service to correct our request to

suspend liquidation in accordance with section 733(d)(1) of the Act,

for all entries of CPF from Thailand.

We are directing the Customs Service to suspend liquidation of all

entries of CPF from Thailand from Dole that are entered, or withdrawn

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

this amended preliminary determination notice in the Federal Register.

Because Dole's dumping margin is now greater than de minimis, and

margins greater than de minimis are included within the all others

rate, we are directing the Customs Service to correct the ``All

Others'' rate so that it will reflect the rates for TIPCO, SAICO,

Malee, and Dole.

In accordance with section 733(d)(1) of the Act, we are directing

the Customs Service to continue to suspend liquidation of all entries

of CPF from Thailand for TIPCO, SAICO, Malee and All Others that are

entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the

date of publication of this amended preliminary determination notice in

the Federal Register. The Customs Service shall require a cash deposit

or the posting of a bond equal to the revised estimated preliminary

dumping margins, as shown below. The suspension of liquidation will

remain in effect until further notice. The weighted-average dumping

margins are as follows:

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

Original Revised

Manufacturer/Producer/Exporter margin margin

percent percent

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

Dole................................................. \1\0.30 0.78

TIPCO................................................ 7.81 7.81

SAICO................................................ 9.55 9.55

Malee................................................ 1.12 1.12

[[Page 9821]]

All Others........................................... 6.73 3.92

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

\1\(De Minimis).

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

International Trade Commission of our amended preliminary

determination.

This amended preliminary determination is published in accordance

with section 733(f) of the Act.

Dated: February 14, 1995.

Susan G. Esserman,

Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.

[FR Doc. 95-4320 Filed 2-21-95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P