Notice2023-28945
Certain Paper Shopping Bags From the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, Preliminary Affirmative Critical Circumstances Determination, Postponement of Final Determination, and Extension of Provisional Measures
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
January 3, 2024
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentInternational Trade Administration
Abstract
The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines that certain paper shopping bags (paper bags) from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (Vietnam) are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV). The period of investigation (POI) is October 1, 2022, through March 31, 2023. Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary determination.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 2 (Wednesday, January 3, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 2 (Wednesday, January 3, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 321-324]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-28945]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-552-836]
Certain Paper Shopping Bags From the Socialist Republic of
Vietnam: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than
Fair Value, Preliminary Affirmative Critical Circumstances
Determination, Postponement of Final Determination, and Extension of
Provisional Measures
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily
determines that certain paper shopping bags (paper bags) from the
Socialist Republic of Vietnam (Vietnam) are being, or are likely to be,
sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV). The period of
investigation (POI) is October 1, 2022, through March 31, 2023.
Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary
determination.
DATES: Applicable January 3, 2024.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Myrna Lobo, AD/CVD Operations, Office
VII, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington,
DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-2371.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
This preliminary determination is made in accordance with section
733(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Commerce
published the notice of initiation of this investigation
[[Page 322]]
in the Federal Register on June 27, 2023.\1\ On October 3, 2023,
Commerce postponed the preliminary determination of this investigation
until December 27, 2023.\2\
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\1\ See Certain Paper Shopping Bags from Cambodia, the People's
Republic of China, Colombia, India, Malaysia, Portugal, Taiwan, the
Republic of Turkey, and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam:
Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations, 88 FR 41589 (June
27, 2023) (Initiation Notice).
\2\ See Certain Paper Shopping Bags from Cambodia, the People's
Republic of China, Colombia, India, Malaysia, Portugal, Taiwan, the
Republic of Turkey, and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam:
Postponement of Preliminary Determinations in the Less-Than-Fair-
Value Investigations, 88 FR 68097 (October 3, 2023).
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For a complete description of the events that followed the
initiation of this investigation, see the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum.\3\ A list of topics discussed in the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum is included as Appendix II to this notice. The Preliminary
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 Preliminary Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly
at <a href="https://access.trade.gov/public/FRNoticesListLayout.aspx">https://access.trade.gov/public/FRNoticesListLayout.aspx</a>.
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\3\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary
Affirmative Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation
of Certain Paper Shopping Bags from the Socialist Republic of
Vietnam,'' dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this
notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation
The products covered by this investigation are paper bags from
Vietnam. For a complete description of the scope of this investigation,
see Appendix I.
Scope Comments
In accordance with the preamble to Commerce's regulations,\4\ in
the Initiation Notice, Commerce set aside a period of time for parties
to raise issues regarding product coverage (i.e., scope).\5\ Certain
interested parties commented on the scope of the investigation as it
appeared in the Initiation Notice. For a summary of the product
coverage comments and rebuttal responses submitted to the record for
this investigation and accompanying discussion and analysis of all
comments timely received, see the Preliminary Scope Decision
Memorandum.\6\ As discussed in the Preliminary Scope Decision
Memorandum, Commerce preliminarily modified the scope language as it
appeared in the Initiation Notice. In the Preliminary Scope Decision
Memorandum, Commerce established the deadline for parties to submit
scope case and rebuttal briefs.
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\4\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule,
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997).
\5\ See AD Initiation Notice, 88 FR at 41590; see also Certain
Paper Shopping Bags from the People's Republic of China and India:
Postponement of Preliminary Determinations in the Countervailing
Duty Investigations, 88 FR 41380, 41381 (August 7, 2023).
\6\ See Memorandum, ``Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum,''
dated concurrently with this notice (Preliminary Scope Decision
Memorandum).
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Methodology
Commerce is conducting this investigation in accordance with
section 731 of the Act. Commerce has calculated export prices in
accordance with section 772(a) of the Act. Because Vietnam is a non-
market economy (NME) country, within the meaning of section 771(18) of
the Act, Commerce has calculated normal value in accordance with
section 773(c) of the Act.
Furthermore, pursuant to sections 776(a) and (b) of the Act,
Commerce preliminarily has relied upon facts otherwise available, with
adverse inferences (AFA), to assign a dumping margin for the Vietnam-
wide entity. For a full description of the methodology underlying
Commerce's preliminary determination, see the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum.
Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances
In accordance with section 733(e) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.206,
Commerce preliminarily determines that critical circumstances exist
with respect to imports of paper bags from Vietnam for Goldsun
Packaging and Printing Joint Stock Company (Goldsun), the non-selected
respondents eligible for a separate rate, and the Vietnam-wide entity.
For a full description of the methodology and results of Commerce's
analysis, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
Vietnam-Wide Entity
Commerce preliminarily finds that several companies, including one
mandatory respondent (Hi-Level, as discussed below), have not
established their eligibility for a separate rate and are considered to
be part of the Vietnam-wide entity.\7\
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\7\ These companies are NamCuong Packaging, Pan Pacific Vietnam,
SIC Paper Bag, Kien Nang, Co., Ltd., and TLC Packaging. Moreover,
International Packaging Limited Company is ineligible for a separate
rate because it did not have a sale during the POI. See Preliminary
Decision Memorandum.
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Combination Rates
In the Initiation Notice,\8\ Commerce stated that it would
calculate producer/exporter combination rates for the respondents that
are eligible for a separate rate in this investigation. Policy Bulletin
05.1 describes this practice.\9\
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\8\ See Initiation Notice, 88 FR at 41593.
\9\ See Enforcement and Compliance's Policy Bulletin No. 05.1,
regarding, ``Separate-Rates Practice and Application of Combination
Rates in Antidumping Investigations involving Non-Market Economy
Countries,'' (April 5, 2005) (Policy Bulletin 05.1), available at
<a href="https://access.trade.gov/Resources/policy/bull05-1.pdf">https://access.trade.gov/Resources/policy/bull05-1.pdf</a>.
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Separate Rates
In this investigation, in addition to Goldsun, we have
preliminarily granted certain non-individually examined respondents a
separate rate. However, because Hi-Level Enterprise Co., Ltd. (Hi-
Level) requested a separate rate and did not fully respond to
Commerce's questionnaire as a mandatory respondent, we have
preliminarily denied a separate rate to Hi-Level and are treating it as
part of the Vietnam-wide entity.
In calculating the rate for non-individually examined separate rate
respondents in NME antidumping duty (AD) investigation, Commerce
normally looks to section 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act, which pertains to
the calculation of the all-others rate in a market economy AD
investigation, for guidance. Pursuant to section 735(c)(5)(A) of the
Act, normally this rate shall be an amount equal to the weighted
average of the estimated AD rate established for those companies
individually examined, excluding zero and de minimis and any rates
based entirely under section 776 of the Act. Commerce calculated an
individual estimated weighted-average dumping margin for Goldsun that
is not zero, de minimis, or based entirely on facts otherwise
available. Thus, the weighted average dumping margin calculated for
Goldsun is the basis to determine the weighted-average dumping margin
for the non-examined separate rate companies, using section
735(c)(5)(A) of the Act for guidance, which provides for the
determination of the estimated weighted-average dumping for all other
producers and exporters in a market economy investigation. See the
below table in the ``Preliminary Determination'' section of this
notice.
Preliminary Determination
Commerce preliminarily determines that the following estimated
weighted-average dumping margins exist:
[[Page 323]]
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Weighted-average
Producer Exporter dumping margin
(percent)
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Goldsun Packaging and Printing Goldsun Packaging and 51.25
Joint Stock Company. Printing Joint Stock
Company.
Dong Sung Vina Printing Co., Dong Sung Printing 51.25
Ltd \10\. Co., Ltd \11\.
Khang Thanh Manufacturing Khang Thannh 51.25
Company Limited. Manufacturing
Company Limited.
Vietnam Red Star Industry Vietnam Red Star 51.25
Company Limited. Industry Company
Limited.
Vietnam-Wide Entity........... ..................... * 92.34
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* Rate based on AFA.
Disclosure
Commerce intends to disclose to interested parties the calculations
performed in connection with this preliminary determination within five
days of its public announcement or, if there is no public announcement,
within five days of the date of publication of this notice in
accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).
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\10\ Dong Sung is sometimes translated as one word ``Dongsung.''
\11\ Id.
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Suspension of Liquidation
In accordance with section 733(d)(2) of the Act, Commerce will
direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to suspend liquidation
of entries of subject merchandise, as described in Appendix I, entered,
or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date 90
days prior to the date of publication of this notice in the Federal
Register, as discussed below. Further, pursuant to section 733(d)(1)(B)
of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(d), Commerce will instruct CBP to require
a cash deposit equal to the weighted-average amount by which normal
value exceeds U.S. price, as indicated in the chart above, as follows:
(1) for the producer/exporter combination listed in the table above,
the cash deposit rate is equal to the estimated weighted-average
dumping margin listed for that combination in the table; (2) for all
combinations of Vietnam producers/exporters of subject merchandise that
have not established eligibility for their own separate rates, the cash
deposit rate will be equal to the estimated weighted-average dumping
margin established for the Vietnam-wide entity; and (3) for all third-
county exporters of subject merchandise not listed in the table above,
the cash deposit rate is the cash deposit rate applicable to the
Vietnam producer/exporter combination (or the Vietnam-wide entity) that
supplied that third-country exporter.
Section 733(e)(2) of the Act provides that, given an affirmative
determination of critical circumstances, any suspension of liquidation
shall apply to unliquidated entries of merchandise entered, or
withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the later of: (a)
the date which is 90 days before the date on which the suspension of
liquidation was first ordered, or (b) the date on which notice of
initiation of the investigation was published. Commerce preliminarily
finds that critical circumstances exist for imports of subject
merchandise from Goldsun, the non-selected respondents eligible for a
separate rate, and the Vietnam-wide entity.\11\ In accordance with
section 733(e)(2)(A) of the Act, the suspension of liquidation shall
apply to all unliquidated entries of merchandise from Goldsun, the non-
selected respondents eligible for a separate rate, and the Vietnam-wide
entity that were entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption
on or after the date which is 90 days before the publication of this
notice in the Federal Register.
These suspension of liquidation instructions will remain in effect
until further notice.
Verification
As provided in section 782(i)(1) of the Act, Commerce intends to
verify information relied upon in making its final determination.
Public Comment
Case briefs or other written comments \12\ may be submitted to the
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance no later than seven
days after the date on which the final verification report is issued in
this investigation.\13\ Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in
the case briefs, may be filed not later than five days after the date
for filing case briefs.\14\ Interested parties who submit case briefs
or rebuttal briefs in this proceeding must submit: (1) a table of
contents listing each issue; and (2) a table of authorities.\15\
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\12\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(1)(i); see also 19 CFR 351.303 (for
general filing requirements).
\13\ Case briefs and rebuttal briefs submitted in response to
this preliminary LTFV determination should not include scope-related
issues. See Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum.
\14\ See 19 CFR 351.309(d); see also Administrative Protective
Order, Service, and Other Procedures in Antidumping and
Countervailing Duty Proceedings, 88 FR 67069, 67077 (September 29,
2023) (APO and Service Final Rule).
\15\ See 19 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2).
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As provided under 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2), in prior
proceedings we have encouraged interested parties to provide an
executive summary of their brief that should be limited to five pages
total, including footnotes. In this investigation, we instead request
that interested parties provide at the beginning of their briefs a
public, executive summary for each issue raised in their briefs.\16\
Further, we request that interested parties limit their executive
summary of each issue to no more than 450 words, not including
citations. We intend to use the executive summaries as the basis of the
comment summaries included in the issues and decision memorandum that
will accompany the final determination in this investigation. We
request that interested parties include footnotes for relevant
citations in the executive summary of each issue. Note that Commerce
has amended certain of its requirements pertaining to the service of
documents in 19 CFR 351.303(f).\17\
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\16\ We use the term ``issue'' here to describe an argument that
Commerce would normally address in a comment of the Issues and
Decision Memorandum.
\17\ See APO and Service Final Rule.
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Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), interested parties who wish to
request a hearing, limited to issues raised in the case and rebuttal
briefs, must submit a written request to the Assistant Secretary for
Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. Department of Commerce, within 30 days
after the date of publication of this notice. Requests should contain
the party's name, address, and telephone number, the number of
participants, whether any participant is a foreign national, and a list
of the issues to be discussed. If a request for a hearing is made,
Commerce intends to hold the hearing at a time and date to be
determined. Parties should confirm the date and time of the hearing two
days before the scheduled date.
[[Page 324]]
Postponement of Final Determination and Extension of Provisional
Measures
Section 735(a)(2) of the Act provides that a final determination
may be postponed until not later than 135 days after the date of the
publication of the preliminary determination if, in the event of an
affirmative preliminary determination, a request for such postponement
is made by exporters who account for a significant proportion of
exports of the subject merchandise, or in the event of a negative
preliminary determination, a request for such postponement is made by
the petitioners. Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.210(e)(2), Commerce requires
that requests by exporters for postponement of a final determination be
accompanied by a request for extension of provisional measures from a
four-month period to a period not more than six months in duration.
On November 21, 2023, the Coalition for Fair Trade in Shopping Bags
(the petitioner) requested that Commerce postpone the final
determination in the event of a negative preliminary determination.\18\
On December 20, 2023, Goldsun timely requested that Commerce postpone
the final determination and that provisional measures be extended to a
period not to exceed six months in the event of an affirmative
preliminary determination.\19\ In accordance with section 735(a)(2)(A)
of the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(b)(2)(ii), because: (1) the preliminary
determination is affirmative; (2) the requesting exporter accounts for
a significant proportion of exports of the subject merchandise; and (3)
no compelling reasons for denial exist, Commerce is postponing the
final determination and extending the provisional measures from a four-
month period to a period not greater than six months. Accordingly,
Commerce will make its final determination no later than 135 days after
the date of publication of this preliminary determination.
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\18\ See Petitioner's Letter, ``Petitioner's Request for
Postponement of the Final Determinations,'' dated November 21, 2023.
\19\ See Goldsun's Letter, ``Request to Extend Final
Determination,'' dated December 20, 2023.
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U.S. International Trade Commission Notification
In accordance with section 733(f) of the Act, Commerce will notify
the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) of its preliminary
determination of sales at LTFV. If the final determination is
affirmative, the ITC will determine before the later of 120 days after
the date of this preliminary determination or 45 days after the final
determination whether imports of the subject merchandise are materially
injuring, or threaten material injury to, the U.S. industry.
Notification to Interested Parties
This determination is issued and published in accordance with
sections 733(f) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(c).
Dated: December 27, 2023.
Abdelali Elouaradia,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix I--Scope of the Investigation
The products within the scope of this investigation are paper
shopping bags with handles of any type, regardless of whether there
is any printing, regardless of how the top edges are finished (e.g.,
folded, serrated, or otherwise finished), regardless of color, and
regardless of whether the top edges contain adhesive or other
material for sealing closed. Subject paper shopping bags have a
width of at least 4.5 inches and depth of at least 2.5 inches.
Paper shopping bags typically are made of kraft paper but can be
made from any type of cellulose fiber, paperboard, or pressboard
with a basis weight less than 300 grams per square meter (GSM).
A non-exhaustive illustrative list of the types of handles on
shopping bags covered by the scope include handles made from any
materials such as twisted paper, flat paper, yarn, ribbon, rope,
string, or plastic, as well as die-cut handles (whether the punchout
is fully removed or partially attached as a flap).
Excluded from the scope are:
<bullet> Paper sacks or bags that are of a \1/6\ or \1/7\ barrel
size (i.e., 11.5-12.5 inches in width, 6.5-7.5 inches in depth, and
13.5-17.5 inches in height) with flat paper handles or die-cut
handles;
<bullet> Paper sacks or bags with die-cut handles, a grams per
square meter paper weight of less than 86 GSM, and a height of less
than 11.5 inches; and
<bullet> Paper sacks or bags (i) with non-paper handles made
wholly of woven ribbon or other similar woven fabric \20\ and (ii)
that are finished with folded tops or for which tied knots or t-bar
aglets (made of wood, metal, or plastic) are used to secure the
handles to the bags.
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\20\ Paper sacks or bags with handles made of braided or twisted
materials, such as rope or cord, do not qualify for this exclusion.
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The above-referenced dimensions are provided for paper bags in
the opened position. The height of the bag is the distance from the
bottom fold edge to the top edge (i.e., excluding the height of
handles that extend above the top edge). The depth of the bag is the
distance from the front of the bag edge to the back of the bag edge
(typically measured at the bottom of the bag). The width of the bag
is measured from the left to the right edges of the front and back
panels (upon which the handles typically are located).
This merchandise is currently classifiable under Harmonized
Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) subheadings
4819.30.0040 and 4819.40.0040. The HTSUS subheadings are provided
for convenience and customs purposes only; the written description
of the scope is dispositive.
Appendix II--List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Period of Investigation
IV. Discussion of the Methodology
V. Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances
VI. Currency Conversion
VII. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2023-28945 Filed 1-2-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
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