Prestressed Concrete Steel Wire Strand From Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine: Antidumping Duty Orders

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 antidumping duty orders on prestressed concrete steel wire strand (PC strand) from Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine.

DATES:

Applicable June 4, 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Drew Jackson at (202) 482-4406 (Indonesia); Stephanie Berger at (202) 482-2483 (Italy); Justin Neuman at (202) 482-0486 (Malaysia); Jerry Huang at (202) 482-4047 (South Africa); Terre Keaton Stefanova at (202) 482-1280 (Spain); Eva Kim at (202) 482-8283 (Tunisia); Laura Griffith at (202) 482-6430 (Ukraine); AD/CVD Operations, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

On April 9, 2021, Commerce published its affirmative final determinations in the less-than-fair-value (LTFV) investigations of PC strand from Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine. On May 24, 2021, the ITC notified Commerce of its final determinations, pursuant to section 735(d) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), that an industry in the United States is materially injured within the meaning of section 735(b)(1)(A)(i) of the Act by reason of LTFV imports of PC strand from Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine, and its negative critical circumstances finding with respect to dumped imports of PC strand from Indonesia.

Scope of the Orders

The products covered by these orders are PC strand from Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine. For a complete description of the scope of these orders, see the appendix to this notice.

Antidumping Duty Orders

On May 24, 2021, in accordance with section 735(d) of the Act, the ITC notified Commerce of its final determinations in these investigations, in which it found that an industry in the United States is materially injured within the meaning of section 735(b)(1)(A)(i) of the Act by reason of imports of PC strand from Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine. Therefore, in accordance with section 735(c)(2) of the Act, Commerce is issuing these antidumping duty orders. Because the ITC determined that imports of PC strand from Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine are materially injuring a U.S. industry, unliquidated entries of such merchandise from Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine, entered or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, are subject to the assessment of antidumping duties.

Therefore, in accordance with section 736(a)(1) of the Act, Commerce will direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to assess, upon further instruction by Commerce, antidumping duties equal to the amount by which the normal value of the merchandise exceeds the export price (or constructed export price) of the merchandise, for all relevant entries of PC strand from Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine. With the exception of entries occurring after the expiration of the provisional measures period and before publication of the ITC's final affirmative injury determinations, as further described below, antidumping duties will be assessed on unliquidated entries of PC strand from Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption, on or after November 19, 2020, the date of publication of the Preliminary Determinations.

Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation

In accordance with section 736 of the Act, Commerce intends to instruct CBP to continue to suspend liquidation on all relevant entries of PC strand from Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine. These instructions suspending liquidation will remain in effect until further notice.

Commerce also intends to instruct CBP to require cash deposits equal to the estimated weighted-average dumping margins indicated in the tables below. Accordingly, effective on the date of publication in the Federal Register of the notice of the ITC's final affirmative injury determinations, CBP will require, at the same time as importers would normally deposit estimated duties on subject merchandise, a cash deposit equal to the rates listed below. The relevant all-others rate applies to all producers or exporters not specifically listed.

Critical Circumstances

With regard to the ITC's negative critical circumstances determination on imports of PC strand from Indonesia, we intend to instruct CBP to lift suspension and to refund any cash deposits made to secure the payment of estimated antidumping duties with respect to entries of the subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after August 21, 2020 (i.e., 90 days prior to the date of the publication of the Preliminary Determinations), but before November 19, 2020 (i.e., the date of publication of the Preliminary Determinations).

Provisional Measures

Section 733(d) of the Act states that suspension of liquidation pursuant to an affirmative preliminary determination may not remain in effect for more than four months, except where exporters representing a significant proportion of exports of the subject merchandise request that Commerce extend the four-month period to no more than six months. At the request of exporters that account for a significant proportion of PC strand from Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine, Commerce extended the four-month period to six months in each of these investigations. Commerce published the preliminary determinations in these investigations on November 19, 2020.

The extended provisional measures period, beginning on the date of publication of the Preliminary Determinations, ends on May 17, 2021. Therefore, in accordance with section 733(d) of the Act and our practice, Commerce intends to instruct CBP to terminate the suspension of liquidation and to liquidate, without regard to antidumping duties, unliquidated entries of PC strand from Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption after May 17, 2021, the final day on which the provisional measures were in effect, until and through the day preceding the date of publication of the ITC's final affirmative injury determinations in the Federal Register. Suspension of liquidation and the collection of cash deposits will resume on the date of publication of the ITC's final determinations in the Federal Register.

Estimated Weighted-Average Dumping Margins

The estimated weighted-average dumping margins are as follows:

Notification to Interested Parties

This notice constitutes the antidumping duty orders with respect to PC strand from Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, and Ukraine pursuant to section 736(a) of the Act. Interested parties can find a list of antidumping duty orders currently in effect at http://enforcement.trade.gov/stats/iastats1.html.

These antidumping duty orders are published in accordance with section 736(a) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.211(b).

Appendix—Scope of the Orders

The products covered by these orders are prestressed concrete steel wire strand (PC strand), produced from wire of non-stainless, non-galvanized steel, which is suitable for use in prestressed concrete (both pretensioned and post-tensioned) applications. The product definition encompasses covered and uncovered strand and all types, grades, and diameters of PC strand. PC strand is normally sold in the United States in sizes ranging from 0.25 inches to 0.70 inches in diameter. PC strand made from galvanized wire is only excluded from the scope if the zinc and/or zinc oxide coating meets or exceeds the 0.40 oz./ft² standard set forth in ASTM-A-475.

The PC strand subject to these orders are currently classifiable under subheadings 7312.10.3010 and 7312.10.3012 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the scope of these orders is dispositive.