Industrial Phosphoric Acid From Belgium; Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

[A-423-602]

Industrial Phosphoric Acid From Belgium; Preliminary Results of

Antidumping Duty Administrative Review

AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration,

Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of preliminary results of antidumping duty

administrative review.

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SUMMARY: In response to a request from FMC Corporation and Monsanto

Company (petitioners), the Department of Commerce (the Department) is

conducting an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on

industrial phosphoric acid (IPA) from Belgium. The review covers

exports by one manufacturer, Societe Chimique Prayon-Rupel (Prayon),

during the period August 1, 1994 through July 31, 1995.

We have preliminarily determined that sales have been made below

normal value (NV). If these preliminary results are adopted in our

final results of administrative review, we will instruct the U.S.

Customs Service (Customs) to assess antidumping duties equal to the

difference between the United States price (USP) and the NV. Interested

parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results. Parties

who submit argument in this proceeding are requested to submit with the

argument: (1) A statement of the issue; and (2) a brief summary of the

argument.

EFFECTIVE DATE: May 24, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Genovese or Zev Primor, Office

of Antidumping Compliance, Import Administration, International Trade

Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and

Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20230; telephone (202) 482-

5253.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Applicable Statute

Unless otherwise indicated, all citations to the statute are

references to the provisions effective January 1, 1995, the effective

date of the amendments made to the Tariff Act of 1930 (the Act)

[[Page 26161]]

by the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA). In addition, unless

otherwise indicated, all citations to the Department's regulations are

to the current regulations, as amended by the interim regulations

published in the Federal Register on May 11, 1995 (60 FR 25130).

Background

The Department published in the Federal Register the antidumping

duty order on IPA from Belgium on August 20, 1987 (52 FR 31439). The

Department published in the Federal Register a notice of ``Opportunity

To Request an Administrative Review'' of the antidumping duty order on

IPA from Belgium covering the period August 1, 1994 through July 31,

1995, on August 1, 1995 (60 FR 39150). On August 25, 1995, petitioners

requested that the Department conduct an administrative review of sales

by Prayon. We initiated the review on September 15, 1995 (60 FR 47930).

The Department is conducting this administrative review in accordance

with section 751 of the Act.

Scope of the Review

The products covered by this review include shipments of IPA from

Belgium. This merchandise is currently classifiable under the

Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) item number 2809.20. The HTS item

numbers are provided for convenience and Customs purposes. The written

description remains dispositive.

United States Price

We based our margin calculations on export price (EP), as defined

in section 772(a) of the Act, because the merchandise was sold to

unaffiliated U.S. purchasers prior to the date of importation. We based

EP on the delivered price to unaffiliated purchasers in the United

States. In accordance with section 772(c)(2)(A) of the Act, we made

deductions for inland and marine insurance, brokerage and handling

costs and freight expenses incurred to deliver the merchandise to the

first unaffiliated customer in the United States. No other adjustments

to EP were claimed or allowed.

Normal Value

In order to determine whether there was a sufficient volume of

sales in the home market to serve as a viable basis for calculating NV,

we compared Prayon's volume of home market sales of the foreign like

product to the volume of U.S. sales of the subject merchandise, in

accordance with section 773(a)(1)(B) of the Act. Because Prayon's

aggregate volume of home market sales of the foreign like product was

greater than five percent of its aggregate volume of U.S. sales of the

subject merchandise, we determined that the home market provides a

viable basis for calculating NV for Prayon, pursuant to section

773(a)(1)(B) of the Act.

Pursuant to section 777A(d)(2), we compared the EPs of individual

transactions to the monthly weighted-average price of sales of the

foreign like product. We based NV on the delivered or ex-works price at

which the foreign like product is first sold to unaffiliated purchasers

for consumption in the exporting country, in the usual commercial

quantities and in the ordinary course of trade, and to the extent

practicable, at the same level of trade as the export price, as defined

by section 773(a)(1)(B)(i) of the Act.

We excluded from our analysis of NV sales to an affiliated home

market customer because the weighted-average sales price to the

affiliated party was less than the weighted-average sales price to

unaffiliated parties.

We reduced NV by freight costs, including inland insurance costs,

incurred in the home market, in accordance with section

773(a)(6)(B)(ii). We made a circumstance of sale adjustment to NV to

account for any differences between EP and NV due to differences in

credit expenses, rebates, and commissions in accordance with

773(a)(6)(C)(iii) of the Act.

Because sales commissions incurred in the home market were paid to

an affiliated party, and there is no information on the record to

establish that these commissions were at arm's-length, we offset U.S.

commissions with the weighted-average of home market indirect selling

expenses up to the amount of the commissions paid on U.S. sales in

accordance with 19 CFR 353.56(b)(1).

No other adjustments were claimed or allowed.

Preliminary Results

As a result of this review, we preliminarily determine that a

margin of 11.36 percent exists for Prayon for the period August 1,

1994, through July 31, 1995.

Parties to this proceeding may request disclosure within five days

of publication of this notice and any interested party may request a

hearing within 10 days of publication. Any hearing, if requested, will

be held 44 days after the date of publication, or the first working day

thereafter. Interested parties may submit case briefs no later than 30

days after the date of publication. Rebuttal briefs, which must be

limited to issues raised in the case briefs, may be filed no later than

37 days after the date of publication. Parties who submit arguments are

requested to submit with the argument (1) a statement of the issue and

(2) a brief summary of the argument. The Department will publish a

notice of the final results of the administrative review, which will

include the results of its analysis of issues raised in any such

comments.

The Department shall determine, and Customs shall assess,

antidumping duties on all appropriate entries. Individual differences

between USP and NV may vary from the percentage stated above. Upon

completion of this review, the Department will issue appraisement

instructions directly to Customs.

Furthermore, the following deposit requirements will be effective

upon completion of the final results of this administrative review for

all shipments of IPA from Belgium entered, or withdrawn from warehouse,

for consumption on or after the publication date of the final results

of this administrative review, as provided by section 751(a)(2)(C) of

the Act: (1) The cash deposit rate for Prayon will be the rate

established in the final results of this administrative review; (2) for

merchandise exported by manufacturers or exporters not covered in this

review but covered in the original LTFV investigation or a previous

review, the cash deposit will continue to be the rate established for

the most recent period for which the manufacturer or exporter received

a company-specific rate; (3) if the exporter is not a firm covered in

this review, or the original investigation, but the manufacturer is,

the cash deposit rate will be that established for the most recent

period for the manufacturer of the merchandise; and (4) if neither the

exporter nor the manufacturer is a firm covered in this or any previous

reviews, the cash deposit rate will be 14.67 percent, the all-others

rate established in the LTFV investigation.

This notice also serves as a preliminary reminder to importers of

their responsibility under 19 CFR 353.26(b) to file a certificate

regarding the reimbursement of antidumping duties prior to liquidation

of the relevant entries during this review period. Failure to comply

with this requirement could result in the Secretary's presumption that

reimbursement of antidumping duties occurred and the subsequent

assessment of double antidumping duties.

This administrative review and notice are in accordance with

section 751(a)(1) of the Act.

[[Page 26162]]

Dated: May 17, 1996.

Paul L. Joffe.

Acting Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.

[FR Doc. 96-13173 Filed 5-23-96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P