Notice2025-09660
Paper File Folders From Sri Lanka: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value
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
May 29, 2025
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentInternational Trade Administration
Abstract
The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines that paper file folders from Sri Lanka 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, 2023, through September 30, 2024. Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary determination.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 102 (Thursday, May 29, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 102 (Thursday, May 29, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22696-22698]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-09660]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-542-806]
Paper File Folders From Sri Lanka: Preliminary Affirmative
Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily
determines that paper file folders from Sri Lanka 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, 2023, through September
30, 2024. Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary
determination.
DATES: Applicable May 29, 2025.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rachel Jennings, 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) 482-1110.
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 on November
19, 2024.\1\ On February 24, 2025, Commerce postponed the preliminary
determination of this investigation until May 21, 2025.\2\
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\1\ See Paper File Folders from Cambodia and Sri Lanka:
Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations, 89 FR 91322
(November 19, 2024) (Initiation Notice).
\2\ See Paper File Folders from Cambodia and Sri Lanka:
Postponement of Preliminary Determinations in the Less-Than-Fair-
Value Investigations, 90 FR 10473 (February 24, 2025).
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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 included 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
Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation of Paper
File Folders from Sri Lanka'' 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 file folders
from Sri Lanka. 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\ we
set aside a period of time for parties to raise issues regarding
product coverage (i.e., scope).\5\ No interested party commented on the
scope of the investigation as it appeared in the Initiation Notice.
Commerce is not modifying the scope language as it appeared in the
Initiation Notice.
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\4\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule,
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997) (Preamble).
\5\ 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) and (b) of the Act,
Commerce has
[[Page 22697]]
preliminarily relied upon facts otherwise available, with adverse
inferences (AFA), to Lanka Educational Products Pvt Ltd (Lanka
Educational Products), because Lanka Educational Products did not
respond to Commerce's requests for information. 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
the 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.
Pursuant to section 735(c)(5)(B) of the Act, if the estimated
weighted-average dumping margins established for all exporters and
producers individually examined are zero, de minimis, or determined
based entirely on facts otherwise available, Commerce may use any
reasonable method to establish the estimated weighted-average dumping
margin for all other producers or exporters.
Commerce has preliminarily determined the estimated weighted-
average dumping margin for the individually examined respondent under
section 776 of the Act. Consequently, consistent with section
735(c)(5)(B) of the Act, Commerce's normal practice under these
circumstances has been to calculate the all-others rate as a simple
average of the alleged dumping margins from the petition.\6\ For a full
description of the methodology underlying Commerce's analysis, see the
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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\6\ See, e.g., Notice of Preliminary Determination of Sales at
Less Than Fair Value: Sodium Nitrite from the Federal Republic of
Germany, 73 FR 21909, 21912 (April 23, 2008), unchanged in Notice of
Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value: Sodium Nitrite
from the Federal Republic of Germany, 73 FR 38986, 38987 (July 8,
2008), and accompanying Issues and Decision Memorandum at Comment 2;
see also Notice of Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair
Value: Raw Flexible Magnets from Taiwan, 73 FR 39673, 39674 (July
10, 2008); Steel Threaded Rod from Thailand: Preliminary
Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Affirmative
Preliminary Determination of Critical Circumstances, 78 FR 79670,
79671 (December 31, 2013), unchanged in Steel Threaded Rod from
Thailand: Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and
Affirmative Final Determination of Critical Circumstances, 79 FR
14476, 14477 (March 14, 2014).
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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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Lanka Educational Products Pvt Ltd.......................... * 91.28
All Others.................................................. 57.43
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* Rate based on facts available with adverse inferences.
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 margin, 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 (i.e., Lanka Educational Products)
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
provide information requested by Commerce, and Commerce preliminarily
determines that the examined respondent has been uncooperative, we will
not conduct verification as provided under section 782(i)(1) of the
Act.
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,
unless the Secretary alters the time limit. 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.\7\ 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.\8\
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\7\ 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).
\8\ 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.\9\
Further, we request that interested parties limit their executive
summary of each issue to no more than 450 words, not including
citations. We
[[Page 22698]]
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).\10\
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\9\ We use the term ``issue'' here to describe an argument that
Commerce would normally address in a comment of the Issues and
Decision Memorandum.
\10\ 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:
(1) the party's name, address, and telephone number, (2) the number of
participants, and whether any participant is a foreign national, and
(3) 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.
Final Determination
Section 735(a)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(b)(1) provide that
Commerce will issue the final determination within 75 days after the
date of its preliminary determination. Accordingly, Commerce will make
its final determination no later than 75 days after the signature date
of this preliminary determination.
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. 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 these imports 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: May 21, 2025.
Abdelali Elouaradia,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix I
Scope of the Investigation
The products within the scope of this investigation are file
folders consisting primarily of paper, paperboard, pressboard, or
other cellulose material, whether coated or uncoated, that has been
folded (or creased in preparation to be folded), glued, taped,
bound, or otherwise assembled to be suitable for holding documents.
The scope includes all such folders, regardless of color, whether or
not expanding, whether or not laminated, and with or without tabs,
fasteners, closures, hooks, rods, hangers, pockets, gussets, or
internal dividers. The term ``primarily'' as used in the first
sentence of this scope means 50 percent or more of the total product
weight, exclusive of the weight of fasteners, closures, hooks, rods,
hangers, removable tabs, and similar accessories, and exclusive of
the weight of the packaging.
Subject folders have the following dimensions in their folded
and closed position: lengths and widths of at least 8 inches and no
greater than 17 inches, regardless of depth.
The scope covers all varieties of folders, including but not
limited to manila folders, hanging folders, fastener holders,
classification folders, expanding folders, pockets, jackets, and
wallets.
Excluded from the scope are:
<bullet> mailing envelopes with a flap bearing one or more
adhesive strips that can be used permanently to seal the entire
length of a side such that, when sealed, the folder is closed on all
four sides;
<bullet> binders, with two or more rings to hold documents in
place, made of paperboard or pressboard encased entirely in plastic;
<bullet> binders consisting of a front cover, back cover, and
spine, with or without a flap; to be excluded, a mechanism with two
or more metal rings must be included on or adjacent to the interior
spine;
<bullet> non-expanding folders with a depth exceeding 2.5 inches
and that are closed or closeable on the top, bottom, and all four
sides (e.g., boxes or cartons);
<bullet> expanding folders that have: (1) 13 or more pockets;
(2) a flap covering the top; (3) a latching mechanism made of
plastic and/or metal to close the flap; and (4) an affixed plastic
or metal carry handle;
<bullet> folders that have an outer surface (other than the
gusset, handles, and/or closing mechanisms, if any) that is covered
entirely with fabric, leather, and/or faux leather;
<bullet> fashion folders, which are defined as folders with all
of the following characteristics: (1) plastic lamination covering
the entire exterior of the folder; (2) printing, foil stamping,
embossing (i.e., raised relief patterns that are recessed on the
opposite side), and/or debossing (i.e., recessed relief patterns
that are raised on the opposite side), covering the entire exterior
surface area of the folder; (3) at least two visible and printed or
foil stamped colors (other than the color of the base paper), each
of which separately covers no less than 10 percent of the entire
exterior surface area; and (4) patterns, pictures, designs, or
artwork covering no less than thirty percent of the exterior surface
area of the folder;
<bullet> portfolios, which are folders having: (1) a width of at
least 16 inches when open flat; (2) no tabs or dividers; and (3) one
or more pockets that are suitable for holding letter size documents
and that cover at least 15 percent of the surface area of the
relevant interior side or sides; and
<bullet> report covers, which are folders having: (1) no tabs,
dividers, or pockets; and (2) one or more fasteners or clips, each
of which is permanently affixed to the center fold, to hold papers
securely in place.
Imports of the subject merchandise are provided for under
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) category
4820.30.0040. Subject imports may also enter under other HTSUS
classifications. While the HTSUS subheading is provided for
convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the
scope of the 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 and Use of Adverse Inference
V. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2025-09660 Filed 5-28-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on May 29, 2025.
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