Certain Cased Pencils From the People's Republic of China: Continuation of Antidumping Duty Order

AGENCY:

Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.

SUMMARY:

As a result of the determinations by the Department of Commerce (the Department) and the International Trade Commission (ITC) that revocation of the antidumping duty (AD) order on certain cased pencils from the People's Republic of China (PRC) would likely lead to a continuation or recurrence of dumping and material injury to an industry in the United States, the Department is publishing this notice of continuation of the AD order.

DATES:

Applicable September 1, 2017.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mary Kolberg, Office I, AD/CVD Operations, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-1785.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

On December 28, 1994, the Department published the AD order on certain cased pencils from the PRC. On June 1, 2016, the Department published the notice of initiation of the fourth sunset review of the Order, pursuant to section 751(c) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). As a result of its review, the Department determined that revocation of the Order would likely lead to a continuation or recurrence of dumping. The Department, therefore, notified the ITC of the magnitude of the margins likely to prevail should the Order be revoked. On August 17, 2017, the ITC determined that revoking the Order on certain cased pencils from the PRC would be likely to lead to continuation or recurrence of material injury to an industry in the United States within a reasonably foreseeable time.

Scope of the Order

Imports covered by the Order are shipments of certain cased pencils of any shape or dimension (except as described below) which are writing and/or drawing instruments that feature cores of graphite or other materials, encased in wood and/or man-made materials, whether or not decorated and whether or not tipped (e.g., with erasers, etc.) in any fashion, and either sharpened or unsharpened. The pencils subject to the Order are currently classifiable under subheading 9609.10.00 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Specifically excluded from the scope of the Order are mechanical pencils, cosmetic pencils, pens, non-cased crayons (wax), pastels, charcoals, chalks, and pencils produced under U.S. patent number 6,217,242, from paper infused with scents by the means covered in the above-referenced patent, thereby having odors distinct from those that may emanate from pencils lacking the scent infusion. Also excluded from the scope of the Order are pencils with all of the following physical characteristics: (1) Length: 13.5 or more inches; (2) sheath diameter: Not less than one-and-one quarter inches at any point (before sharpening); and (3) core length: Not more than 15 percent of the length of the pencil. In addition, pencils with all of the following physical characteristics are excluded from the scope of the Order: Novelty jumbo pencils that are octagonal in shape, approximately ten inches long, one inch in diameter before sharpening, and three-and-one eighth inches in circumference, composed of turned wood encasing one-and-one half inches of sharpened lead on one end and a rubber eraser on the other end. The HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes only; the written description of the merchandise covered by the scope of the Order is dispositive.

Continuation of the Order

As a result of the determinations by the Department and the ITC that revocation of the Order would likely lead to continuation or recurrence of dumping and material injury to an industry in the United States, pursuant to section 751(d)(2) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.218(a), the Department hereby orders the continuation of the Order on certain cased pencils from the PRC. U.S. Customs and Border Protection will continue to collect AD cash deposits at the rates in effect at the time of entry for all imports of subject merchandise.

The effective date of the continuation of the Order will be the date of publication in the Federal Register of this notice of continuation. Pursuant to section 751(c)(2) of the Act, the Department intends to initiate the next five-year review of the Order not later than 30 days prior to the fifth anniversary of the effective date of continuation.

This five-year sunset review and this notice are in accordance with section 751(c) of the Act and published pursuant to section 777(i)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.218(f)(4).