Passenger Vehicle and Light Truck Tires From the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Countervailing Duty Order

AGENCY:

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

SUMMARY:

Based on affirmative final determinations by the Department of Commerce (Commerce) and the International Trade Commission (ITC), Commerce is issuing a countervailing duty order on passenger vehicle and light truck tires from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (Vietnam).

DATES:

Applicable July 19, 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Thomas Schauer, AD/CVD Operations, Office I, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-0410.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

In accordance with sections 705(d) and 777(i) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), on May 27, 2021, Commerce published its affirmative final determination that countervailable subsidies are being provided to producers and exporters of passenger vehicle and light truck tires from Vietnam. On July 12, 2021, the ITC notified Commerce of its affirmative final determination that an industry in the United States is materially injured within the meaning of section 705(b)(1)(A)(i) of the Act, by reason of subsidized imports of passenger vehicle and light truck tires from Vietnam.

Scope of the Order

The product covered by this order is passenger vehicle and light truck tires from Vietnam. For a complete description of the scope of the order, see the appendix to this notice.

Countervailing Duty Order

On July 12, 2021, in accordance with sections 705(b)(1)(A)(i) and 705(d) of the Act, the ITC notified Commerce of its final determination in this investigation, in which it found that an industry in the United States is materially injured by reason of subsidized imports of passenger vehicle and light truck tires from Vietnam. Therefore, in accordance with section 705(c)(2) of the Act, Commerce is issuing this countervailing duty order. Because the ITC determined that imports of passenger vehicle and light truck tires from Vietnam are materially injuring a U.S. industry, unliquidated entries of such merchandise from Vietnam, which are entered or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, are subject to the assessment of countervailing duties.

Therefore, in accordance with section 706(a) of the Act, Commerce will direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to assess, upon further instruction by Commerce, countervailing duties for all relevant entries of passenger vehicle and light truck tires from Vietnam. With the exception of entries occurring after the expiration of the provisional measures period and before the publication of the ITC's final affirmative injury determination, as further described below, countervailing duties will be assessed on unliquidated entries of passenger vehicle and light truck tires from Vietnam, entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after November 10, 2020, the date of publication of the Preliminary Determination.

Suspension of Liquidation and Cash Deposits

In accordance with section 706 of the Act, Commerce will instruct CBP to reinstitute the suspension of liquidation of passenger vehicle and light truck tires from Vietnam, as described in the appendix to this notice, effective on the date of publication of the ITC's notice of final affirmative determination in the Federal Register , and to assess, upon further instruction by Commerce, pursuant to section 706(a)(1) of the Act, countervailing duties for each entry of the subject merchandise in an amount based on the net countervailable subsidy rates below. On or after the date of publication of the ITC's final injury determination in the Federal Register , CBP must require, at the same time as importers would deposit estimated normal customs duties on this merchandise, a cash deposit equal to the rates listed in the table below. The all-others rate applies to all producers or exporters not specifically listed, as appropriate.

Provisional Measures

Section 703(d) of the Act states that instructions issued pursuant to an affirmative preliminary determination may not remain in effect for more than four months. In the underlying investigation, Commerce published the Preliminary Determination on November 10, 2020. Therefore, the four-month period beginning on the date of the publication of the Preliminary Determination ended on March 9, 2021.

In accordance with section 703(d) of the Act, we instructed CBP to terminate the suspension of liquidation and to liquidate, without regard to countervailing duties, unliquidated entries of passenger vehicle and light truck tires from Vietnam entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption, after March 9, 2021, the final day on which provisional measures were in effect, until and through the day preceding the date of publication of the ITC's final injury determination in the Federal Register. Suspension of liquidation will resume on the date of publication of the ITC's final determination in the Federal Register.

Notification to Interested Parties

This notice constitutes the countervailing duty order with respect to passenger vehicle and light truck tires from Vietnam pursuant to section 706(a) of the Act. Interested parties can find a list of countervailing duty orders currently in effect at http://enforcement.trade.gov/stats/iastats1.html.

This order is issued and published in accordance with section 706(a) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.211(b).

Appendix

Scope of the Order

The scope of this order is passenger vehicle and light truck tires. Passenger vehicle and light truck tires are new pneumatic tires, of rubber, with a passenger vehicle or light truck size designation. Tires covered by this order may be tube-type, tubeless, radial, or non-radial, and they may be intended for sale to original equipment manufacturers or the replacement market.

Subject tires have, at the time of importation, the symbol “DOT” on the sidewall, certifying that the tire conforms to applicable motor vehicle safety standards. Subject tires may also have the following prefixes or suffix in their tire size designation, which also appears on the sidewall of the tire:

Prefix designations:

P—Identifies a tire intended primarily for service on passenger cars.

LT—Identifies a tire intended primarily for service on light trucks.

Suffix letter designations:

LT—Identifies light truck tires for service on trucks, buses, trailers, and multipurpose passenger vehicles used in nominal highway service.

All tires with a “P” or “LT” prefix, and all tires with an “LT” suffix in their sidewall markings are covered by this order regardless of their intended use.

In addition, all tires that lack a “P” or “LT” prefix or suffix in their sidewall markings, as well as all tires that include any other prefix or suffix in their sidewall markings, are included in the scope, regardless of their intended use, as long as the tire is of a size that fits passenger cars or light trucks. Sizes that fit passenger cars and light trucks include, but are not limited to, the numerical size designations listed in the passenger car section or light truck section of the Tire and Rim Association Year Book, as updated annually. The scope includes all tires that are of a size that fits passenger cars or light trucks, unless the tire falls within one of the specific exclusions set out below.

Passenger vehicle and light truck tires, whether or not attached to wheels or rims, are included in the scope. However, if a subject tire is imported attached to a wheel or rim, only the tire is covered by the scope.

Specifically excluded from the scope are the following types of tires:

(1) Racing car tires; such tires do not bear the symbol “DOT” on the sidewall and may be marked with “ZR” in size designation;

(2) pneumatic tires, of rubber, that are not new, including recycled and retreaded tires;

(3) non-pneumatic tires, such as solid rubber tires;

(4) tires designed and marketed exclusively as temporary use spare tires for passenger vehicles which, in addition, exhibit each of the following physical characteristics:

(a) The size designation and load index combination molded on the tire's sidewall are listed in Table PCT-1R (“T” Type Spare Tires for Temporary Use on Passenger Vehicles) or PCT-1B (“T” Type Diagonal (Bias) Spare Tires for Temporary Use on Passenger Vehicles) of the Tire and Rim Association Year Book,

(b) the designation “T” is molded into the tire's sidewall as part of the size designation, and,

(c) the tire's speed rating is molded on the sidewall, indicating the rated speed in MPH or a letter rating as listed by Tire and Rim Association Year Book, and the rated speed is 81 MPH or a “M” rating;

(5) tires designed and marketed exclusively as temporary use spare tires for light trucks which, in addition, exhibit each of the following physical characteristics:

(a) The tires have a 265/70R17, 255/80R17, 265/70R16, 245/70R17, 245/75R17, 245/70R18, or 265/70R18 size designation;

(b) “Temporary Use Only” or “Spare” is molded into the tire's sidewall;

(c) the tread depth of the tire is no greater than 6.2 mm; and

(d) Uniform Tire Quality Grade Standards (“UTQG”) ratings are not molded into the tire's sidewall with the exception of 265/70R17 and 255/80R17 which may have UTQG molded on the tire sidewall;

(6) tires designed and marketed exclusively for specialty tire (ST) use which, in addition, exhibit each of the following conditions:

(a) The size designation molded on the tire's sidewall is listed in the ST sections of the Tire and Rim Association Year Book,

(b) the designation “ST” is molded into the tire's sidewall as part of the size designation,

(c) the tire incorporates a warning, prominently molded on the sidewall, that the tire is “For Trailer Service Only” or “For Trailer Use Only”,

(d) the load index molded on the tire's sidewall meets or exceeds those load indexes listed in the Tire and Rim Association Year Book for the relevant ST tire size, and

(e) either

(i) the tire's speed rating is molded on the sidewall, indicating the rated speed in MPH or a letter rating as listed by Tire and Rim Association Year Book, and the rated speed does not exceed 81 MPH or an “M” rating; or

(ii) the tire's speed rating molded on the sidewall is 87 MPH or an “N” rating, and in either case the tire's maximum pressure and maximum load limit are molded on the sidewall and either

(1) both exceed the maximum pressure and maximum load limit for any tire of the same size designation in either the passenger car or light truck section of the Tire and Rim Association Year Book; or

(2) if the maximum cold inflation pressure molded on the tire is less than any cold inflation pressure listed for that size designation in either the passenger car or light truck section of the Tire and Rim Association Year Book, the maximum load limit molded on the tire is higher than the maximum load limit listed at that cold inflation pressure for that size designation in either the passenger car or light truck section of the Tire and Rim Association Year Book;

(7) tires designed and marketed exclusively for off-road use and which, in addition, exhibit each of the following physical characteristics:

(a) The size designation and load index combination molded on the tire's sidewall are listed in the off-the-road, agricultural, industrial or ATV section of the Tire and Rim Association Year Book,

(b) in addition to any size designation markings, the tire incorporates a warning, prominently molded on the sidewall, that the tire is “Not For Highway Service” or “Not for Highway Use”,

(c) the tire's speed rating is molded on the sidewall, indicating the rated speed in MPH or a letter rating as listed by the Tire and Rim Association Year Book, and the rated speed does not exceed 55 MPH or a “G” rating, and

(d) the tire features a recognizable off-road tread design;

(8) Tires designed and marketed for off-road use as all-terrain-vehicle (ATV) tires or utility-terrain-vehicle (UTV) tires, and which, in addition, exhibit each of the following characteristics:

(a) The tire's speed rating is molded on the sidewall, indicating the rated speed in MPH or a letter rating as listed by the Tire and Rim Association Year Book, and the rated speed does not exceed 87 MPH or an “N” rating, and

(b) both of the following physical characteristics are satisfied:

(i) The size designation and load index combination molded on the tire's sidewall does not match any of those listed in the passenger car or light truck sections of the Tire and Rim Association Year Book, and

(ii) The size designation and load index combination molded on the tire's sidewall matches any of the following size designation (American standard or metric) and load index combinations:

The products covered by this order are currently classified under the following Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) subheadings: 4011.10.10.10, 4011.10.10.20, 4011.10.10.30, 4011.10.10.40, 4011.10.10.50, 4011.10.10.60, 4011.10.10.70, 4011.10.50.00, 4011.20.10.05, and 4011.20.50.10. Tires meeting the scope description may also enter under the following HTSUS subheadings: 4011.90.10.10, 4011.90.10.50, 4011.90.20.10, 4011.90.20.50, 4011.90.80.10, 4011.90.80.50, 8708.70.45.30, 8708.70.45.46, 8708.70.45.48, 8708.70.45.60, 8708.70.60.30, 8708.70.60.45, and 8708.70.60.60. While HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and for customs purposes, the written description of the subject merchandise is dispositive.