Notice2024-03860
Antidumping Duty Order on Polyethylene Terephthalate Film, Sheet, and Strip From India: Preliminary Results of Changed Circumstances Review
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
February 26, 2024
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentInternational Trade Administration
Abstract
The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines that Garware Hi-Tech Films Limited (Garware Hi-Tech) is the successor-in-interest to Garware Polyester Limited (Garware Polyester) for purposes of the antidumping duty (AD) order on polyethylene terephthalate film, sheet, and strip (PET film) from India. Accordingly, Garware Hi-Tech is entitled to Garware Polyester's AD cash deposit rates with respect to entries of subject merchandise in the above referenced proceedings. Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 38 (Monday, February 26, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 38 (Monday, February 26, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14053-14055]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-03860]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-533-824]
Antidumping Duty Order on Polyethylene Terephthalate Film, Sheet,
and Strip From India: Preliminary Results of Changed Circumstances
Review
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily
[[Page 14054]]
determines that Garware Hi-Tech Films Limited (Garware Hi-Tech) is the
successor-in-interest to Garware Polyester Limited (Garware Polyester)
for purposes of the antidumping duty (AD) order on polyethylene
terephthalate film, sheet, and strip (PET film) from India.
Accordingly, Garware Hi-Tech is entitled to Garware Polyester's AD cash
deposit rates with respect to entries of subject merchandise in the
above referenced proceedings. Interested parties are invited to comment
on these preliminary results.
DATES: Applicable February 26, 2024.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jacqueline Arrowsmith, 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) 482-5255.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On August 22, 2023, Commerce published the initiation of a changed
circumstances review (CCR) on the AD order \1\ of PET film from India
for Garware Hi-Tech.\2\ Commerce declined to combine the Initiation
Notice with the preliminary results of the CCR, citing the need to
issue a supplemental questionnaire to Garware Hi-Tech regarding its
ownership and management structure.\3\ On September 12, 2023, Commerce
issued a supplemental questionnaire to Garware Hi-Tech seeking
clarification about ownership and management structure and its
suppliers.\4\ On September 25, 2023, Garware Hi-Tech timely submitted
its response to this questionnaire.\5\ No other interested party
submitted comments or factual information regarding Garware Hi-Tech's
request.
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\1\ See Notice of Amended Final Antidumping Duty Determination
of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Antidumping Duty Order:
Polyethylene Terephthalate Film, Sheet, and Strip from India, 67 FR
44175 (July 1, 2002) (Order).
\2\ The notice of initiation of this CCR referred to this
company as Garware Hi-Tech. We clarify that the full name of the
company requesting this CCR is Garware Hi-Tech Films Limited,
hereafter abbreviated as Garware Hi-Tech. See Polyethylene
Terephthalate Film, Sheet and Strip from India: Initiation of
Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review; Garware, 88 FR 57090
(August 22, 2023) (Initiation Notice).
\3\ Id.
\4\ See Commerce's Letter, ``Changed Circumstances Review of the
Antidumping Duty Order on Polyethylene Terephthalate Film, Sheet and
Strip (PET Film) from India: Supplemental Questionnaire,'' dated
September 12, 2023.
\5\ See Garware Hi-Tech's Letter, ``Garware Hi-Tech Films
Limited's request for a Changed Circumstances Review Response to 1st
Supplemental Questionnaire,'' dated September 25, 2023.
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Scope of the Order
The merchandise subject to the Order is PET film. The product is
currently classifiable under subheading 3920.62.00.90 of the Harmonized
Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Although the HTSUS number
is provided for convenience and for customs purposes, the full written
product description, available in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum,
remains dispositive.\6\
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\6\ See Memorandum, ``Polyethylene Terephthalate Film, Sheet,
and Strip from India: Preliminary Results of Changed Circumstances
Review,'' dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this
notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
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Legal Framework
In this CCR, pursuant to section 751(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930,
as amended (the Act), Commerce conducted a successor-in-interest
analysis. In determining whether one company is the successor-in-
interest to another company as part of an AD proceeding, Commerce
examines several factors including, but not limited to, changes in (1)
management and ownership; (2) production facilities; (3) supplier
relationships; and (4) customer base.\7\ Although no single, or even
several, of these factors will necessarily provide a dispositive
indication of succession, generally, Commerce will consider a company
to be the successor-in-interest if its resulting operation is not
materially dissimilar to that of its predecessor.\8\ Thus, if the
``totality of circumstances'' demonstrate that, with respect to the
production and sale of the subject merchandise, the new company
operates as essentially the same business entity as the prior company,
Commerce will assign the successor-in-interest the cash deposit rate of
its predecessor.\9\
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\7\ See, e.g., Ball Bearings and Parts Thereof from France:
Final Results of Changed-Circumstances Review, 75 FR 34688 (June 18,
2010), and accompanying Issues and Decision Memorandum at Comment 1.
\8\ See, e.g., Fresh and Chilled Atlantic Salmon from Norway;
Final Results of Changed Circumstances Antidumping Duty
Administrative Review, 64 FR 9979, 9979-80 (March 1, 1999).
\9\ Id.; see also Brass Sheet and Strip from Canada; Final
Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, 57 FR 20460 (May
13, 1992) at Comment 1.
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Preliminary Results of Review
We preliminarily determine that Garware Hi-Tech is the successor-
in-interest to Garware Polyester. Record evidence submitted by Garware
Hi-Tech indicates that, based on the totality of the circumstances
under Commerce's successor-in-interest criteria, Garware Hi-Tech
operates as materially the same business entity as Garware Polyester
with respect to the production and sale of subject merchandise. For a
complete discussion of the information that Garware Hi-Tech provided
and the complete successor-in-interest analysis, see the Preliminary
Decision Memorandum. A list of topics included in the Preliminary
Decision Memorandum is included as an attachment 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>.
Public Comment
Case briefs or other written comments may be submitted to the
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance no later than 30
days after the date of publication of this notice.\10\ 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.\11\ 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.\12\
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\10\ Commerce is exercising its discretion under 19 CFR
351.309(c)(1)(i) to alter the time limit for the filing of case
briefs.
\11\ 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).
\12\ See 19 CFR 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 review, we instead request that
interested parties provide at the beginning of their briefs a public,
executive summary for each issue raised in their briefs.\13\ 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
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decision memorandum that will accompany the final results in this CCR.
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).\14\
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\13\ We use the term ``issue'' here to describe an argument that
Commerce would normally address in a comment of the Issues and
Decision Memorandum.
\14\ See APO and Final Service 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, filed electronically via ACCESS, within 30
days of publication of this notice. Requests should contain the
following information: (1) the party's name, address, and telephone
number; (2) the number of participants; and (3) a list of issues to be
discussed. If a request for a hearing is made, Commerce will inform
parties of the time and date for the hearing.
Final Results of Review
Consistent with 19 CFR 351.216(e), we intend to issue the final
results of this CCR no later than 270 days after the date on which this
review was initiated. If we continue to find that Garware Hi-Tech is
the successor-in-interest to Garware Polyester, we will assign Garware
Hi-Tech the cash deposit rate currently assigned to Garware Polyester
(i.e., 4.45 percent).\15\
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\15\ See Polyethylene Terephthalate Film, Sheet, and Strip from
India: Final Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review;
2017-2018, 85 FR 14883, 14884 (March 16, 2020), as amended by
Polyethylene Terephthalate Film, Sheet, and Strip from India: Final
Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review; 2017-2018;
Correction, 88 FR 87751 (December 19, 2023).
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Notification to Interested Parties
We are issuing and publishing these preliminary results in
accordance with sections 751(b)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act, and 19 CFR
351.221(b)(4).
Dated: February 20, 2024.
Ryan Majerus,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and Negotiations, performing the
non-exclusive functions and duties of the Assistant Secretary for
Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix
List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope of the Order
IV. Successor-in-Interest Determination
V. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2024-03860 Filed 2-23-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on February 26, 2024.
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