Carbon and Certain Alloy Steel Wire Rod From Canada; Final Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review

AGENCY:

Import Administration, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.

ACTION:

Notice of final results of antidumping duty changed circumstances review.

DATES:

Effective Date: May 7, 2004.

SUMMARY:

On February 25, 2004, the Department of Commerce (the Department) published a notice of initiation and preliminary results of changed circumstances review of the antidumping duty order on carbon and certain alloy steel wire rod from Canada. In it, the Department preliminary determined that only merchandise both produced and exported by the Stelco Group (Stelco, Inc. and Stelwire Ltd.) is excluded from the order. See Notice of Initiation and Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review, 69 FR 8623 (February 25, 2004) (Preliminary Results). Interested parties were given an opportunity to comment on the preliminary results; the petitioners submitted comments on March 26, 2004, endorsing our preliminary results. Since we received no other comments, the final results do not differ from the preliminary results of review.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Daniel O'Brien or Constance Handley, at (202) 482-1376 or (202) 482-0631, respectively; AD/CVD Enforcement Office 5, Group II, Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street & Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20230.

Background

The Stelco Group received a de minimis margin in the investigation and was excluded from the antidumping duty order. Several months after the publication of the antidumping duty order, the Department received requests for clarification regarding the Stelco Group's exclusion from the order. Specifically, parties inquired as to whether all products produced by the Stelco Group, or only those both produced and exported by the Stelco Group, are excluded from the antidumping order. These inquiries resulted from inconsistent language in the order and in our instructions to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), then known as the U.S. Customs Service, regarding the order.

On February 25, 2004, the Department published its preliminary results, finding that only merchandise both produced and exported by the Stelco Group is excluded from the order.

Scope of the Review

The merchandise covered by this order is certain hot-rolled products of carbon steel and alloy steel, in coils, of approximately round cross section, 5.00 mm or more, but less than 19.00 mm, in solid cross-sectional diameter.

Specifically excluded are steel products possessing the above-noted physical characteristics and meeting the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) definitions for (a) stainless steel; (b) tool steel; (c) high nickel steel; (d) ball bearing steel; and (e) concrete reinforcing bars and rods. Also excluded are (f) free machining steel products (i.e., products that contain by weight one or more of the following elements: 0.03 percent or more of lead, 0.05 percent or more of bismuth, 0.08 percent or more of sulfur, more than 0.04 percent of phosphorus, more than 0.05 percent of selenium, or more than 0.01 percent of tellurium).

Also excluded from the scope are 1080 grade tire cord quality wire rod and 1080 grade tire bead quality wire rod. This grade 1080 tire cord quality rod is defined as: (i) Grade 1080 tire cord quality wire rod measuring 5.0 mm or more but not more than 6.0 mm in cross-sectional diameter; (ii) with an average partial decarburization of no more than 70 microns in depth (maximum individual 200 microns); (iii) “having no non-deformable inclusions greater than 20 microns and no deformable inclusions greater than 35 microns; (iv) having a carbon segregation per heat average of 3.0 or better using European Method NFA 04-114; (v) having a surface quality with no surface defects of a length greater than 0.15 mm; (vi) capable of being drawn to a diameter of 0.30 mm or less with 3 or fewer breaks per ton, and (vii) containing by weight the following elements in the proportions shown: (1) 0.78 percent or more of carbon, (2) less than 0.01 percent of aluminum, (3) 0.040 percent or less, in the aggregate, of phosphorus and sulfur, (4) 0.006 percent or less of nitrogen, and (5) not more than 0.15 percent, in the aggregate, of copper, nickel and chromium.

This grade 1080 tire bead quality rod is defined as: (i) Grade 1080 tire bead quality wire rod measuring 5.5 mm or more but not more than 7.0 mm in cross-sectional diameter; (ii) with an average partial decarburization of no more than 70 microns in depth (maximum individual 200 microns); (iii) “having no non-deformable inclusions greater than 20 microns and no deformable inclusions greater than 35 microns; (iv) having a carbon segregation per heat average of 3.0 or better using European Method NFA 04-114; (v) having a surface quality with no surface defects of a length greater than 0.2 mm; (vi) capable of being drawn to a diameter of 0.78 mm or larger with 0.5 or fewer breaks per ton; and (vii) containing by weight the following elements in the proportions shown: (1) 0.78 percent or more of carbon, (2) less than 0.01 percent of soluble aluminum, (3) 0.040 percent or less, in the aggregate, of phosphorus and sulfur, (4) 0.008 percent or less of nitrogen, and (5) either not more than 0.15 percent, in the aggregate, of copper, nickel and chromium (if chromium is not specified), or not more than 0.10 percent in the aggregate of copper and nickel and a chromium content of 0.24 to 0.30 percent (if chromium is specified).

For purposes of the grade 1080 tire cord quality wire rod and the grade 1080 tire bead quality wire rod, an inclusion will be considered to be deformable if its ratio of length (measured along the axis—that is, the direction of rolling—of the rod) over thickness (measured on the same inclusion in a direction perpendicular to the axis of the rod) is equal to or greater than three. The size of an inclusion for purposes of the 20 microns and 35 microns limitations is the measurement of the largest dimension observed on a longitudinal section measured in a direction perpendicular to the axis of the rod. This measurement methodology applies only to inclusions on certain grade 1080 tire cord quality wire rod and certain grade 1080 tire bead quality wire rod that are entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after July 24, 2003.

The designation of the products as “tire cord quality” or “tire bead quality” indicates the acceptability of the product for use in the production of tire cord, tire bead, or wire for use in other rubber reinforcement applications such as hose wire. These quality designations are presumed to indicate that these products are being used in tire cord, tire bead, and other rubber reinforcement applications, and such merchandise intended for the tire cord, tire bead, or other rubber reinforcement applications is not included in the scope. However, should petitioners or other interested parties provide a reasonable basis to believe or suspect that there exists a pattern of importation of such products for other than those applications, end-use certification for the importation of such products may be required. Under such circumstances, only the importers of record would normally be required to certify the end use of the imported merchandise.

All products meeting the physical description of subject merchandise that are not specifically excluded are included in this scope.

The products under investigation are currently classifiable under subheadings 7213.91.3010, 7213.91.3090, 7213.91.4510, 7213.91.4590, 7213.91.6010, 7213.91.6090, 7213.99.0031, 7213.99.0038, 7213.99.0090, 7227.20.0010, 7227.20.0020, 7227.20.0090, 7227.20.0095, 7227.90.6051, 7227.90.6053, 7227.90.6058, and 7227.90.6059 of the HTSUS. Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the scope of this proceeding is dispositive.

Final Results of Review

We find that only merchandise produced and exported by the Stelco Group is excluded from the antidumping duty order. For a complete discussion of the basis of this decision, see the Preliminary Results. Because we received no comments, other than those supporting the Department's preliminary results, we have adopted the same position in these final results.

Effective as of the date of these final results, we will instruct CBP to continue to liquidate without regard to antidumping duties subject merchandise produced and exported by the Stelco Group. For all merchandise produced but not exported by the Stelco Group we will instruct CBP to collect a cash deposit equal to the rate established for the exporter, or if the exporter does not have its own rate, the “All Others” rate of 8.11 percent. Furthermore, for the period prior to the effective date of the final results of this changed circumstances review, we will instruct CBP to liquidate any entries of merchandise produced by Stelco, regardless of exporter, without regard to antidumping duties.

We are issuing and publishing this finding and notice in accordance with sections 751(b)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and sections 351.216 and 351.221(c)(3) of the Department's regulations.