Brass Sheet and Strip From Canada; Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-122-601]

Brass Sheet and Strip From Canada; 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 one respondent, the Department

of Commerce (the Department) has conducted an administrative review of

the antidumping duty order on brass sheet and strip from Canada. The

review covers one manufacturer/exporter of the subject merchandise to

the United States for the period January 1, 1994 through December 31,

1994.

We have preliminarily determined that U.S. sales have not been made

below the normal value (NV). If these preliminary results are adopted

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

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

arguments 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: February 27, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karen H. Park or John Kugelman, 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:

Background

On January 12, 1987, the Department published in the Federal

Register (52 FR 1217) the antidumping duty order on brass sheet and

strip (BSS) from Canada. On January 12, 1995, the Department published

in the Federal Register a notice of ``Opportunity to Request an

Administrative Review'' of this antidumping duty order for the period

of January 1, 1994 through December 31, 1994 (60 FR 2941). We received

a timely request for review from the respondent, Wolverine Tube

(Canada), Inc. (Wolverine). On February 15, 1995, the Department

initiated a review of Wolverine (60 FR 8629). The period of review

(POR) is January 1, 1994 though December 31, 1994.

The Applicable Statute

Unless otherwise indicated, all citations to the Tariff Act of

1930, as amended (the Act), are references to the provisions effective

January 1, 1995, the effective date of the amendments made to the Act

by the Uruguay Round Agreements Act.

Scope of the Review

Imports covered by the review are shipments of BSS, other than

leaded and tin BSS. The chemical composition of the covered products is

currently defined in the Copper Development Association (C.D.A.) 200

Series or the Unified Numbering System (U.N.S.) C2000. Products whose

chemical composition is defined by other C.D.A. or U.N.S. series are

not covered by this order.

The physical dimensions of the products covered by this review are

BSS of solid rectangular cross section over 0.006 inches (0.15

millimeters) through 0.188 inches (4.8 millimeters) in finished

thickness or gauge, regardless of width. Coil, wound-on-reels (traverse

wound), and cut-to-length products are included. During the review

period such merchandise was classifiable under Harmonized Tariff

Schedule (HTS) subheadings 7409.21.00 and 7409.29.00. Although the HTS

subheadings are provided for convenience and for Customs purposes, the

written description of the scope of this order remains dispositive.

Pursuant to the final affirmative determination of circumvention of

antidumping duty order, we determined that brass plate used in the

production of BSS falls within the scope of the antidumping duty order

on BSS from Canada. See Brass Sheet and Strip from Canada: Final

Affirmative Determination of Circumvention of Antidumping Duty Order,

58 FR 33610 (June 18, 1993).

The review covers one Canadian manufacturer/exporter, Wolverine,

and the period January 1, 1994 through December 31, 1994.

United States Price (USP)

In calculating USP for Wolverine, the Department treated

respondent's sales as export price (EP), as defined in section 772(a)

of the Act, because the subject merchandise was sold to unaffiliated

U.S. purchasers prior to the date of importation.

We calculated EP based on packed, delivered, duty-paid prices to

unaffiliated customers in the United States. We made deductions from

the gross unit price, where appropriate, for inland freight--plant/

warehouse to port of exit, brokerage and handling, international

freight, and U.S. customs duty, in accordance with section 772(c)(2)(A)

of the Act. We added to the gross unit price packing costs for shipment

to the United States, where applicable, pursuant to section

772(c)(1)(A) of the Act.

No other adjustments to USP were claimed or allowed.

Cost of Production Analysis

Because the Department disregarded sales below the cost of

production (COP) in the last completed review of Wolverine, we have

reasonable grounds to believe or suspect that sales below the COP may

have occurred during this review. See Section 773(b)(2)(A)(ii) of the

Act and Brass Sheet and Strip from Canada; Final Results of Antidumping

Administrative Review, 60 FR 49582 (September 26, 1995). Therefore,

pursuant to section 773(b)(1) of the Act, we initiated a COP

investigation of Wolverine.

In accordance with section 773(b)(3) of the Act, we calculated the

COP based on the sum of the costs of materials and fabrication employed

in producing the foreign like product, plus selling, general and

administrative expenses (SG&A) and the cost of all expenses incidental

to placing the foreign like product in condition packed ready for

shipment. We relied on the home market sales and COP information

provided by Wolverine in its questionnaire responses.

We compared COP to the reported home market prices on a product-

specific basis, less any applicable movement charges, and rebates. In

accordance with section 773(b)(1) of the Act, in determining whether to

disregard home market sales made at prices below the COP, we examined

whether such sales were made within an extended period of time in

substantial quantities, and whether such sales were made at prices

which permitted recovery of all costs within a reasonable period of

time.

Pursuant to section 773(b)(2)(C) of the Act, where less than 20

percent of

[[Page 7239]]

Wolverine's home market sales of a given product were at prices less

than the COP, we did not disregard any below-cost sales of that product

because we determined that the below-cost sales were not made within an

extended period of time in ``substantial quantities.'' Where 20 percent

or more of Wolverine's home market sales of a given product were at

prices less than the COP, we disregarded the below-cost sales because

we determined that the below-cost sales were made within an extended

period of time in ``substantial quantities'', in accordance with

section 773(b)(2)(B) of the Act, and because we determined that the

below-cost home market sales of a given product were at prices which

would not permit recovery of all costs within a reasonable period of

time, in accordance with section 773(b)(2)(D) of the Act.

The results of our cost test indicated that within an extended

period of time, for certain home market products, more than 20 percent

of the home market sales were sold at prices below the COP. In

addition, no evidence was presented to indicate that below-cost prices

would permit the recovery of all costs within a reasonable period of

time. Thus, we excluded these below-cost sales and used the remaining

above-cost sales as the basis for determining NV, in accordance with

section 773(b)(1) of the Act.

Normal Value (NV)

Based on a comparison of the aggregate quantity of home market and

U.S. sales, and absent any information that a particular market

situation in the exporting country does not permit a proper comparison,

we determined that the quantity of foreign like product sold in the

exporting country was sufficient to permit a proper comparison with the

sales of the subject merchandise to the United States, pursuant to

section 773(a) of the Act. Therefore, in accordance with section

773(a)(1)(B)(i) of the Act, we based NV on the prices at which the

foreign like products were first sold for consumption in the exporting

country.

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

individual transactions to the monthly weighted-average price of sales

of the foreign like product. We compared EP sales to sales in the home

market of identical merchandise.

We based NV on the price at which the foreign like product is first

sold 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 EP, in accordance with

section 773(a)(1)(B)(i) of the Act. We made adjustments, where

applicable, for expenses incident to placing the foreign like product

in condition packed ready for shipment to the place of delivery to the

purchaser and home market credit expenses, in accordance with section

773(a)(6)(B)(ii) of the Act. We increased home market price by U.S.

packing costs in accordance with section 773(a)(6)(A) of the Act and

reduced it by home market packing costs in accordance with section

773(a)(6)(B) of the Act. Prices were reported net of value-added taxes

(VAT) and, therefore, no adjustment for VAT was necessary. In

accordance with section 773(a)(6)(C) of the Act, we increased NV by

adding U.S. credit expense. No other adjustments were claimed or

allowed.

Preliminary Results of the Review

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

following weighted-average dumping margin exists:

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

Margin

Manufacturer/Exporter Period (percent)

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

Wolverine Tube (Canada), Inc.................... 1/01/94-12/

31/94 0.00

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

Parties to the proceeding may request disclosure within five days

of the date of publication of this notice. 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 workday thereafter. Case briefs and/or written comments from

interested parties may be submitted not later than 30 days after the

date of publication. Rebuttal briefs and rebuttals to written comments,

limited to issues raised in the case briefs and comments, may be filed

not later than 37 days after the date of publication. 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. The Department will issue the final results of the

administrative review, including the results of its analysis of issues

raised in any such written comments or at a hearing, within 180 days of

issuance of these preliminary results.

The Department shall determine, and Customs shall assess,

antidumping duties on all appropriate entries. Individual differences

between USP and NV may vary from the percentages stated above. The

Department will issue appraisement instructions directly to Customs.

The final results of this review shall be the basis for the assessment

of antidumping dumping duties on entries of merchandise covered by the

determination and for future deposits of estimated duties.

Furthermore, the following deposit requirements will be effective

upon completion of the final results of these administrative reviews

for all shipments of BSS from Canada entered, or withdrawn from

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

final results of these administrative reviews, as provided by section

751(a)(1) of the Act: (1) The cash deposit rate for Wolverine will be

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

for merchandise exported by manufacturers or exporters not covered in

these reviews but covered in the original LTFV investigation or a

previous review, the cash deposit will continue to be the most recent

rate published in the final determination or final results for which

the manufacturer or exporter received a company-specific rate; (3) if

the exporter is not a firm covered in these reviews, or the original

investigation, but the manufacturer is, the cash deposit rate will be

that established for the manufacturer of the merchandise in the final

results of these reviews, or the LTFV investigation; and (4) if neither

the exporter nor the manufacturer is a firm covered in these or any

previous reviews, the cash deposit rate will be 8.10 percent, the ``all

others'' rate established in the LTFV investigation (52 FR 1217,

January 12, 1987).

This notice serves as a preliminary reminder to parties subject to

administrative protective orders (APOs) of their responsibility

concerning the disposition of proprietary information disclosed under

APO in accordance with 19 CFR 353.34(d). Timely written notification of

the return/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.

This notice serves as a preliminary reminder to importers of their

responsibility 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 (19 U.S.C. 1675(a)(1)).

[[Page 7240]]

Dated: February 22, 1996.

Susan G. Esserman,

Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.

[FR Doc. 96-4418 Filed 2-26-96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P