Notice2024-25643
Dioctyl Terephthalate From the Republic of Türkiye: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, Postponement of Final Determination, and Extension of Provisional Measures
Primary source
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Published
November 5, 2024
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentInternational Trade Administration
Abstract
The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines that dioctyl terephthalate (DOTP) from the Republic of T[uuml]rkiye (T[uuml]rkiye) is being, or is likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV). The period of investigation is January 1, 2023, through December 31, 2023. Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary determination.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 214 (Tuesday, November 5, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 214 (Tuesday, November 5, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 87855-87857]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-25643]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-489-852]
Dioctyl Terephthalate From the Republic of T[uuml]rkiye:
Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value,
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 dioctyl terephthalate (DOTP) from the Republic of
T[uuml]rkiye (T[uuml]rkiye) is being, or is likely to be, sold in the
United States at less than fair value (LTFV). The period of
investigation is January 1, 2023, through December 31, 2023. Interested
parties are invited to comment on this preliminary determination.
DATES: Applicable November 5, 2024.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dennis McClure, AD/CVD Operations,
Office VIII, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-5973.
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 in the Federal
Register on April 22, 2024.\1\ On July 22, 2024, Commerce tolled
certain deadlines in this administrative proceeding by seven days.\2\
On July 24, 2024, Commerce postponed the preliminary determination of
this investigation until October 29, 2024.\3\
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\1\ See Dioctyl Terephthalate From Malaysia, Poland, Taiwan, and
the Republic of T[uuml]rkiye: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value
Investigations, 89 FR 29285 (April 22, 2024) (Initiation Notice).
\2\ See Memorandum, ``Tolling of Deadlines for Antidumping and
Countervailing Duty Proceedings,'' dated July 22, 2024.
\3\ See Dioctyl Terephthalate from Malaysia, Poland, Taiwan, and
the Republic of T[uuml]rkiye: Postponement of Preliminary
Determinations in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations, 89 FR
59891 (July 24, 2024).
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For a complete description of the events that followed the
initiation of this investigation, see the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum.\4\ A list of topics included in the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum is included as Appendix II in 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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\4\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary
Affirmative Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation
of Dioctyl Terephthalate from the Republic of T[uuml]rkiye,'' dated
concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary
Decision Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation
The product covered by this investigation is DOTP from
T[uuml]rkiye. For a complete description of the scope of this
investigation, see Appendix I.
Scope Comments
In accordance with the Preamble to Commerce's regulations,\5\ the
Initiation Notice set aside a period for parties to raise issues
regarding product coverage (i.e., scope).\6\ No interested party
[[Page 87856]]
commented on the scope of the investigation as it appeared in the
Initiation Notice. Therefore, Commerce is not preliminarily modifying
the scope language as it appeared in the Initiation Notice. See the
complete description of the scope in Appendix I to this notice.
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\5\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule,
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997).
\6\ See Initiation Notice.
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Methodology
Commerce is conducting this investigation in accordance with
section 731 of the Act. Pursuant to section 776(a) of the Act, Commerce
has preliminarily relied upon facts otherwise available for By
Petrokimya Sanayi Ve Ticaret A.S. (Petrokimya), the sole mandatory
respondent in this investigation, because Petrokimya failed to submit
the necessary information to calculate an antidumping margin in this
investigation. Further, Commerce preliminarily determines that
Petrokimya failed to cooperate by not acting to the best of its ability
to comply with a request for information and Commerce is using an
adverse inference in selecting from among the facts otherwise available
(i.e., applying adverse facts available (AFA) to this respondent, in
accordance with section 776(b) of the Act). For a full description of
the methodology underlying the preliminary determination, see the
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
All-Others Rate
Sections 733(d)(1)(ii) and 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act provide that, in
a preliminary determination, Commerce shall determine an estimated all-
others rate for all exporters and producers not individually examined.
This rate shall be an amount equal to the weighted average of the
estimated weighted-average dumping margins established for exporters
and producers individually investigated, excluding any zero and de
minimis margins, and any margins determined entirely under section 776
of the Act.
The estimated weighted-average dumping margins in this preliminary
determination were calculated entirely under section 776 of the Act. In
cases where no weighted-average dumping margins other than zero, de
minimis, or those determined entirely under section 776 of the Act have
been established for individually examined entities, in accordance with
section 735(c)(5)(B) of the Act, Commerce typically calculates a simple
average of the margins alleged in the petition and applies the results
to all other entities not individually examined.\7\
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\7\ See, e.g., Thermal Paper from Spain: Final Determination of
Sales at Less Than Fair Value, 86 FR 54162, 54163 (September 30,
2021), and accompanying Issues and Decision Memorandum; see also
Certain Preserved Mushrooms from France: Final Affirmative
Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, 87 FR 72963, 72964
(November 28, 2022).
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In the Petition,\8\ Eastman Chemical Company (the petitioner)
calculated two estimated dumping margins, 42.50 and 80.71 percent.
Therefore, consistent with our practice, for the all-others rate in
this investigation, we preliminarily assigned a simple average of the
dumping margins alleged in the Petition, which is 61.61 percent.\9\
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\8\ See Petitioner's Letter, ``Dioctyl Terephthalate (DOTP) from
Taiwan, Turkey, Malaysia, and Poland,'' dated March 26, 2024
(Petition); see also Checklist, ``AD Investigation Initiation
Checklist,'' dated April 15, 2024 (Initiation Checklist); see also
Petitioner's Letter, ``Response to Request for Clarification,''
dated April 8, 2024.
\9\ See Petition.
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Preliminary Determination
Commerce preliminarily determines that the following estimated
weighted-average dumping margins exist:
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Weighted-
average
Exporter/producer dumping
margin
(percent)
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By Petrokimya Sanayi Ve Ticaret A.S......................... * 80.71
All Others.................................................. 61.61
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* Rate based on AFA.
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 of
publication of this notice in the Federal Register. 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 estimated weighted-
average dumping margins or the estimated all-others rate, as follows:
(1) the cash deposit rate for the respondent listed above will be equal
to the company-specific estimated weighted-average dumping margin
determined in this preliminary 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.
Disclosure
Normally, Commerce discloses to interested parties the calculations
performed in connection with a preliminary determination within five
days of any public announcement or, if there is no public announcement,
within five days of the date of publication of the notice of
preliminary determination in the Federal Register, in accordance with
19 CFR 351.224(b). However, because Commerce preliminarily applied AFA
to the individually examined company Petrokimya in this investigation,
in accordance with section 776 of the Act, and the applied AFA rate is
based solely on the petition, there are no calculations to disclose.
Consistent with 19 CFR 351.224(e), Commerce will analyze and, if
appropriate, correct any timely allegations of significant ministerial
errors by amending the preliminary determination. However, consistent
with 19 CFR 351.224(d), Commerce will not consider incomplete
allegations that do not address the significance standard under 19 CFR
351.224(g) following the preliminary determination. Instead, Commerce
will address such allegations in the final determination together with
issues raised in the case briefs or other written comments.
Verification
Because the examined respondent in this investigation did not act
to the best of its ability to provide information requested by
Commerce, and Commerce preliminarily determines the examined respondent
is uncooperative, we will not conduct verification.
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 the preliminary
determination.\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 or rebuttal
briefs in this proceeding must submit: (1) a table of contents
[[Page 87857]]
listing each issue; and (2) a table of authorities.\12\
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\10\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(1)(i); see also 19 CFR 351.303 (for
general filing requirements).
\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 briefs 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.\13\
Further, we request that interested parties limit their public
executive summary of each issue to no more than 450 words, not
including citations. We intend to use the public 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 public 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 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 in the Federal Register.
Requests should contain the party's name, address, and telephone
number, the number of participants and 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 date and time to be determined. Parties should confirm by telephone
the date, time, and location of the hearing two days before the
scheduled date.
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 petitioner. Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.210(e)(2), Commerce requires
that requests by respondents for postponement of a final antidumping
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 October 8, 2024, Petrokimya and the petitioner \15\ requested
that Commerce postpone the final determination and that the provisional
measures be extended to a period not to exceed six months,
respectively. 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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\15\ See Petrokimya's Letter, ``Investigation Request to
Postpone Final Determination and Provisional Measures Period,''
dated October 8, 2024; see also Petitioner's Letter, ``Petitioner's
Request to Postpone Final Antidumping Duty Determinations,'' dated
October 8, 2024.
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U.S. International Trade Commission Notification (ITC)
In accordance with section 733(f) of the Act, Commerce will notify
the 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 DOTP from T[uuml]rkiye
are materially injuring, or threaten material injury to, the U.S.
industry.
Notification to Interested Parties
This preliminary 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: October 29, 2024.
Ryan Majerus,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and Negotiations, performing the
non-exclusive functions and duties of Assistant Secretary for
Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix I--Scope of the Investigation
The merchandise covered by this investigation is dioctyl
terephthalate (DOTP), regardless of form. DOTP that has been blended
with other products is included within this scope when such blends
include constituent parts that have not been chemically reacted with
each other to produce a different product. For such blends, only the
DOTP component of the mixture is covered by the scope of the
investigations.
DOTP that is otherwise subject to this investigation is not
excluded when commingled with DOTP from sources not subject to this
investigation. Commingled refers to the mixing of subject and non-
subject DOTP. Only the subject component of such commingled products
is covered by the scope of this investigation.
DOTP has the general chemical formulation of
C<INF>6</INF>H<INF>4</INF>
(C<INF>8</INF>H<INF>17</INF>COO)<INF>2</INF> and a chemical name of
``bis (2-ethylhexyl) terephthalate'' and has a Chemical Abstract
Service (CAS) registry number of 6422-86-2. Regardless of the label,
all DOTP is covered by this investigation.
Subject merchandise is currently classified under subheading
2917.39.2000 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States
(HTSUS). Subject merchandise may also enter under subheadings
2917.39.7000 or 3812.20.1000 of the HTSUS. While the CAS registry
number and HTSUS classifications are provided for convenience and
customs purposes, the written description of the scope of this
investigation is dispositive.
Appendix II--List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Period of Investigation
IV. Application of Facts Available With Adverse Inferences
V. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2024-25643 Filed 11-4-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on November 5, 2024.
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