Notice2021-15755
Methionine From Japan: Final Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Final Negative Determination of Critical Circumstances
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
July 23, 2021
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentInternational Trade Administration
Abstract
The Department of Commerce (Commerce) determines that imports of methionine from Japan are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV) for the period of investigation July 1, 2019, through June 30, 2020.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 139 (Friday, July 23, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 139 (Friday, July 23, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38983-38985]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-15755]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-588-879]
Methionine From Japan: Final Affirmative Determination of Sales
at Less Than Fair Value and Final Negative Determination of Critical
Circumstances
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Commerce) determines that imports
of methionine from Japan are being, or are likely to be, sold in the
United States at less than fair value (LTFV) for the period of
investigation July 1, 2019, through June 30, 2020.
DATES: Applicable July 23, 2021.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert Scully, AD/CVD Operations,
Office V, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-0572.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On March 4, 2021, Commerce published in the Federal Register the
preliminary affirmative determination in the LTFV investigation of
methionine from Japan, in which we also postponed the final
determination until July 19, 2021.\1\ We invited interested parties to
comment on the Preliminary Determination. A summary of the events that
occurred since Commerce published the Preliminary Determination may be
found in the Issues and Decision Memorandum.\2\
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\1\ See Methionine from Japan: Preliminary Affirmative
Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, Preliminary
Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances and Postponement
of Final Determination and Extension of Provisional Measures, 86 FR
12625 (March 4, 2021) (Preliminary Determination), and accompanying
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
\2\ See Memorandum, ``Issues and Decision Memorandum for the
Final Affirmative Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value
Investigation of Methionine from Japan,'' dated concurrently with,
and hereby adopted by, this notice (Issues and Decision Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation
The product covered by this investigation is methionine from Japan.
For a complete description of the scope of this investigation, see
Appendix I.
Analysis of Comments Received
All the issues raised in the case and rebuttal briefs that were
submitted by parties in this investigation are addressed in the Issues
and Decision Memorandum. A list of the issues addressed in the Issues
and Decision Memorandum is attached to this notice as Appendix II. The
Issues and 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 <a href="https://access.trade.gov">https://access.trade.gov</a>. In
addition, a complete version of the Issues and Decision Memorandum can
be accessed directly at <a href="http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/index.html">http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/index.html</a>.
Verification
Commerce was unable to conduct on-site verification of the
information relied upon in making its final determination in this
investigation. However, we took additional steps in lieu of an on-site
verification to verify the information relied upon in making this final
determination, in accordance with section 782(i) of the Tariff Act of
1930, as amended (the Act).\3\
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\3\ See Commerce's Letter, ``Request for Documentation,'' dated
March 17, 2021; see also Sumitomo Chemical's Letter, ``Methionine
from Japan: Resubmission of March 25, 2021 Verification
Questionnaire Response,'' dated April 6, 2021.
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Changes Since the Preliminary Determination
Based on our analysis of the comments received, we have made
certain changes to the margin calculations for Sumitomo Chemical
Company, Ltd. (Sumitomo Chemical). For a discussion of these changes,
see the Issues and Decision Memorandum.
All-Others Rate
Section 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act provides that the estimated
weighted-average dumping margin for all other producers and exporters
not individually investigated shall be equal to the weighted average of
the estimated weighted-average dumping margins established for
exporters and producers individually investigated excluding rates that
are zero, de minimis, or determined entirely under section 776 of the
Act.
Commerce calculated an individual estimated weighted-average
dumping margin for Sumitomo Chemical. Therefore, the only rate which is
not zero, de minimis, or determined entirely under section 776 of the
Act is the rate calculated for Sumitomo Chemical. Consequently, the
rate calculated for Sumitomo Chemical is also assigned as the rate for
all other producers and exporters.
[[Page 38984]]
Final Negative Determination of Critical Circumstances
Commerce preliminarily determined that critical circumstances exist
for Sumitomo Chemicals and with respect to all other producers/
exporters.\4\ Parties submitted comments regarding our preliminary
critical circumstances determination and we have modified our critical
circumstances finding for Sumitomo Chemicals and all other producers/
exporters for this final determination. Thus, in accordance with
section 735(a)(3) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.206, Commerce finds that
critical circumstances do not exist for Sumitomo Chemicals or for all
other producers/exporters. For a full description of the methodology
and results of Commerce's critical circumstances analysis, see the
Issues and Decision Memorandum.
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\4\ See Preliminary Decision Memorandum at 4-7.
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Final Determination
The final estimated weighted-average dumping margins are as
follows:
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Estimated
weighted-
average
Exporter/producer dumping
margin
(percent)
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Sumitomo Chemical Company, Ltd.............................. 76.50
All Others.................................................. 76.50
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Disclosure
We intend to disclose the calculations performed in this final
determination within five days of the date of publication of this
notice to parties in this proceeding in accordance with 19 CFR
351.224(b).
Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation
In accordance with section 735(c)(1)(B) of the Act, Commerce will
instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to continue to
suspend the liquidation of all appropriate entries of subject
merchandise, as described in Appendix I of this notice, entered, or
withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after March 4, 2021,
the date of publication in the Federal Register of the affirmative
Preliminary Determination.
Pursuant to section 735(c)(1)(B)(ii) of the Act and 19 CFR
351.210(d), where appropriate, we will instruct CBP to require a cash
deposit for such entries of merchandise equal to the estimated
weighted-average dumping margin or estimated all-others rate, as
follows: (1) The cash deposit rate for the respondents listed above
will be equal to the company-specific estimated weighted-average
dumping margins determined in this final determination; (2) if the
exporter is not a respondent identified above, but the producer is,
then the cash deposit rate will be equal to the company-specific
estimated weighted-average dumping margin established for that producer
of the subject merchandise; and (3) the cash deposit rate for all other
producers and exporters will be equal to the all-others estimated
weighted-average dumping margin. These suspension of liquidation
instructions will remain in effect until further notice.
Further, because our final critical circumstances determination is
negative, in accordance with section 735(c)(3) of the Act, we will
instruct CBP to terminate the retroactive suspension of liquidation
ordered at the Preliminary Determination for Sumitomo Chemicals and all
other producers/exporters and to refund any cash deposits required with
respect to entries of subject merchandise covered by the retroactive
suspension of liquidation.
International Trade Commission Notification
In accordance with section 735(d) of the Act, we will notify the
International Trade Commission (ITC) of the final affirmative
determination of sales at LTFV. Because Commerce's final determination
is affirmative, in accordance with section 735(b)(2) of the Act, the
ITC will make its final determination as to whether the domestic
industry in the United States is materially injured, or threatened with
material injury, by reason of imports or sales (or the likelihood of
sales) for importation of methionine no later than 45 days after this
final determination. If the ITC determines that such injury does not
exist, this proceeding will be terminated, and all cash deposits posted
will be refunded and suspension of liquidation will be lifted. If the
ITC determines that such injury does exist, Commerce will issue an
antidumping duty order directing CBP to assess, upon further
instruction by Commerce, antidumping duties on all imports of the
subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for
consumption on or after the effective date of the suspension of
liquidation, as discussed above in the ``Continuation of Suspension of
Liquidation'' section.
Notification Regarding Administrative Protective Orders
This notice will serve as a final reminder to the parties subject
to administrative protective order (APO) of their responsibility
concerning the disposition of proprietary information disclosed under
APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305(a)(3). Timely written
notification of return or destruction of APO materials or conversion to
judicial protective order is hereby requested. Failure to comply with
the regulations and the terms of an APO is a sanctionable violation.
Notification to Interested Parties
This determination and this notice are issued and published in
accordance with sections 735(d) and 777(i)(1) of the Act, and 19 CFR
351.210(c).
Dated: July 19, 2021.
Christian Marsh,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix I
Scope of the Investigation
The merchandise covered by this investigation is methionine and
dl-Hydroxy analogue of dl-methionine, also known as 2-Hydroxy 4-
(Methylthio) Butanoic acid (HMTBa), regardless of purity, particle
size, grade, or physical form. Methionine has the chemical formula
C<INF>5</INF>H<INF>11</INF>NO<INF>2</INF>S, liquid HMTBa has the
chemical formula C<INF>5</INF>H<INF>10</INF>O<INF>3</INF>S, and dry
HMTBa has the chemical formula
(C<INF>5</INF>H<INF>9</INF>O<INF>3</INF>S)<INF>2</INF>Ca.
Subject merchandise also includes methionine processed in a
third country including, but not limited to, refining, converting
from liquid to dry or dry to liquid form, or any other processing
that would not otherwise remove the merchandise from the scope of
this investigation if performed in the country of manufacture of the
in-scope methionine or dl-Hydroxy analogue of dl-methionine.
The scope also includes methionine that is commingled (i.e.,
mixed or combined) with methionine from sources not subject to this
investigation. Only the subject component of such commingled
products is covered by the scope of this investigation.
Excluded from this investigation is United States Pharmacopoeia
(USP) grade methionine. In order to qualify for this exclusion, USP
grade methionine must meet or exceed all of the chemical, purity,
performance, and labeling requirements of the United States
Pharmacopeia and the National Formulary for USP grade methionine.
Methionine is currently classified under subheadings
2930.40.00.00 and 2930.90.46.00 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of
the United States (HTSUS). Methionine has the Chemical Abstracts
Service (CAS) registry numbers 583-91-5, 4857-44-7, 59-51-8 and 922-
50-9. While the HTSUS subheadings and CAS registry number are
provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written
description of the scope of this investigation is dispositive.
[[Page 38985]]
Appendix II
List of Topics Discussed in the Issues and Decision Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Changes Since the Preliminary Determination
IV. Final Negative Determination of Critical Circumstances
V. Discussion of the Issues
Comment 1: Research and Development (R&D) Expenses
Comment 2: Offset to the General & Administrative (G&A) Ratio
Comment 3: ``Other'' Financial Expenses
Comment 4: Shutdown Adjustment
Comment 5: Startup Adjustment
Comment 6: Packaging Materials/Product Characteristics
Comment 7: Critical Circumstances
VI. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2021-15755 Filed 7-22-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on July 23, 2021.
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