85 FR 217 pgs. 71306-71308 - Citric Acid and Certain Citrate Salts From Belgium: Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review; 2018–2019
Type: NOTICEVolume: 85Number: 217Pages: 71306 - 71308
Pages: 71306, 71307, 71308Docket number: [A–423–813]
FR document: [FR Doc. 2020–24829 Filed 11–6–20; 8:45 am]
Agency: Commerce Department
Sub Agency: International Trade Administration
Official PDF Version: PDF Version
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-423-813]
Citric Acid and Certain Citrate Salts From Belgium: Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review; 2018-2019
AGENCY:
Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY:
The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines that S.A. Citrique Belge N.V. (Citrique Belge), the sole respondent subject to this antidumping duty (AD) administrative review, did not make sales of subject merchandise at less than normal value during the period of review (POR) January 8, 2018 through June 30, 2019. Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results of review.
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DATES:
Applicable November 9, 2020.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Stephanie Berger, AD/CVD Operations, Office III, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-2483.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On September 9, 2019, Commerce published a notice initiating an AD administrative review of citric acid and certain citrate salts (citric acid) from Belgium covering Citrique Belge for the POR. 1 On March 13, 2020, Commerce extended the deadline for issuing the preliminary results of this review. 2 On April 24, 2020, Commerce tolled all deadlines in administrative reviews by 50 days. 3 On July 21, 2020 Commerce tolled all deadlines in administrative reviews by 60 days, thereby extending the deadline for these preliminary results until November 17, 2020. 4 For a complete description of the events that followed, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. 5 A list of the topics discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is attached as an appendix 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 https://access.trade.gov. In addition, a complete version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/. The signed Preliminary Decision Memorandum and the electronic version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum are identical in content.
Footnotes:
1 ? See Initiation of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Administrative Reviews, 84 FR 47242 (September 9, 2019).
2 ? See Memorandum, "Citric Acid and Certain Citrate Salts from Belgium: Extension of Deadline for Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review," dated March 13, 2020.
3 ? See Memorandum, "Tolling of Deadlines for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Administrative Reviews in Response to Operational Adjustments Due to COVID-19," dated April 24, 2020.
4 ? See Memorandum, "Tolling of Deadlines for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Administrative Reviews," dated July 21, 2020.
5 ? See Memorandum, "Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary Results of the 2018-2019 Antidumping Duty Administrative Review: Citric Acid and Certain Citrate Salts from Belgium," dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
Scope of the Order
The merchandise covered by this order includes all grades and granulation sizes of citric acid, sodium citrate, and potassium citrate in their unblended forms, whether dry or in solution, and regardless of packaging type. The scope also includes blends of citric acid, sodium citrate, and potassium citrate; as well as blends with other ingredients, such as sugar, where the unblended form(s) of citric acid, sodium citrate, and potassium citrate constitute 40 percent or more, by weight, of the blend.
The scope also includes all forms of crude calcium citrate, including dicalcium citrate monohydrate, and tricalcium citrate tetrahydrate, which are intermediate products in the production of citric acid, sodium citrate, and potassium citrate.
The scope includes the hydrous and anhydrous forms of citric acid, the dihydrate and anhydrous forms of sodium citrate, otherwise known as citric acid sodium salt, and the monohydrate and monopotassium forms of potassium citrate. Sodium citrate also includes both trisodium citrate and monosodium citrate which are also known as citric acid trisodium salt and citric acid monosodium salt, respectively.
The scope does not include calcium citrate that satisfies the standards set forth in the United States Pharmacopeia and has been mixed with a functional excipient, such as dextrose or starch, where the excipient constitutes at least 2 percent, by weight, of the product.
Citric acid and sodium citrate are classifiable under 2918.14.0000 and 2918.15.1000 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), respectively. Potassium citrate and crude calcium citrate are classifiable under 2918.15.5000 and, if included in a mixture or blend, 3824.99.9295 of the HTSUS. Blends that include citric acid, sodium citrate, and potassium citrate are classifiable under 3824.99.9295 of the HTSUS. Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the merchandise is dispositive.
Methodology
Commerce is conducting this review in accordance with section 751(a) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Export price has been calculated in accordance with section 772 of the Act. Normal value was calculated in accordance with section 773 of the Act. For a full description of the methodology underlying our conclusions, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
Preliminary Results of the Review
Commerce preliminarily determines that the following weighted-average dumping margin exists for the period January 8, 2018 through June 30, 2019:
| Exporter/producer | Estimated weighted-average dumping margin (percent) |
|---|---|
| S.A. Citrique Belge N.V | 0.00 |
Disclosure and Public Comment
Commerce intends to disclose the calculations used in its analysis to interested parties in this review within five days of the date of publication of this notice in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b). Interested parties are invited to comment on the preliminary results of this review. Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(1)(ii), interested parties may submit case briefs no later than 30 days after the date of publication of this notice. Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in the case briefs, may be filed no later than seven days after the date for filing case briefs. 6 Parties who submit case briefs or rebuttal briefs in this proceeding are requested to submit with each argument: (1) A statement of the issue, (2) a brief summary of the argument, and (3) a table of authorities. 7 Case and rebuttal briefs should be filed using ACCESS. 8 Note that Commerce has temporarily modified certain of its requirements for serving documents containing business proprietary information, until further notice. 9
Footnotes:
6 ? See 19 CFR 351.309(d).
7 ? See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2).
8 ? See 19 CFR 351.
9 ? See Temporary Rule Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements Due to COVID-19; Extension of Effective Period, 85 FR 41363 (July 10, 2020).
[top] Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), any interested party may request a hearing within 30 days of the publication of this notice in the Federal Register . If a hearing is requested, Commerce will notify interested parties of the hearing date and time. Interested parties who wish to request a hearing must submit a written request to the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance, filed electronically via ACCESS 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 hearing participants; and (3) a list of the issues to be discussed in the hearing. Issues raised in the hearing will
We intend to issue the final results of this administrative review, including the results of our analysis of issues raised by the parties in the written comments, within 120 days of publication of these preliminary results in the Federal Register , unless otherwise extended. 10
Footnotes:
10 ? See section 751(a)(3)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.213(h)(1).
Assessment Rates
Upon issuance of the final results, Commerce shall determine, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) shall assess, antidumping duties on all appropriate entries covered by this review. 11 If Citrique Belge's calculated weighted-average dumping margin is above de minimis ( i.e., greater than or equal to 0.5 percent) in the final results of this review, we will calculate importer-specific assessment ad valorem rates based on the ratio of the total amount of antidumping duties calculated for the importer's examined sales and the total entered value of the sales in accordance with 19 CFR 351.212(b)(1). If Citrique Belge's weighted-average dumping margin continues to be zero or de minimis, or the importer-specific assessment rate is zero or de minimis in the final results of review, we intend to instruct CBP to liquidate the appropriate entries without regard to antidumping duties. 12 The final results of this review will be the basis for the assessment of antidumping duties on entries of merchandise covered by the final results of this review where applicable.
Footnotes:
11 ? See 19 CFR 351.212(b)(1).
12 ? See 19 CFR 351.106(c)(2).
In accordance with our "automatic assessment" practice, for entries of subject merchandise during the POR produced by Citrique Belge for which Citrique Belge did not know that the merchandise it sold to the intermediary ( e.g., a reseller, trading company, or exporter) was destined for the United States, we will instruct CBP to liquidate unreviewed entries at the all-others rate if there is no rate for the intermediate company(ies) involved in the transaction. 13 We intend to issue instructions to CBP 15 days after publication of the final results of this review.
Footnotes:
13 ?For a full discussion of this practice, see Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings: Assessment of Antidumping Duties, 68 FR 23954 (May 6, 2003).
Cash Deposit Requirements
The following cash deposit requirements will be effective for all shipments of citric acid from Belgium entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of the final results of this administrative review, as provided by section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act: (1) The cash deposit rate for Citrique Belge will be the rate established in the final results of this administrative review, except if the rate is less than 0.50 percent and, therefore, de minimis within the meaning of 19 CFR 351.106(c)(1), in which case the cash deposit rate will be zero; (2) for merchandise exported by producers or exporters not covered in this administrative review but covered in a prior segment of the proceeding, the cash deposit rate will continue to be the company-specific rate published for the most recently completed segment of this proceeding in which the producer or exporter participated; (3) if the exporter is not a firm covered in this review, a prior review, or the original less-than-fair-value investigation but the producer is, then the cash deposit rate will be the rate established for the most recently completed segment of the proceeding for the producer of the merchandise; and (4) the cash deposit rate for all other producers or exporters will continue to be 19.30 percent, the all-others rate established in the less-than-fair-value investigation. 14 These deposit requirements, when imposed, shall remain in effect until further notice.
Footnotes:
14 ? See Citric Acid and Certain Citrate Salts from Belgium, Colombia and Thailand: Antidumping Duty Orders, 83 FR 35214 (July 25, 2018).
Notification to Importers
This notice also serves as a preliminary reminder to importers of their responsibility under 19 CFR 351.402(f) to file a certificate regarding the reimbursement of antidumping duties prior to liquidation of the relevant entries during this review period. Failure to comply with this requirement could result in Commerce's presumption that reimbursement of antidumping duties occurred and the subsequent assessment of doubled antidumping duties.
Notification to Interested Parties
These preliminary results of review are issued and published in accordance with sections 751(a)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.221(b)(4).
Dated: November 3, 2020.
Jeffrey I. Kessler,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix
List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope of the Order
IV. Discussion of the Methodology
V. Date of Sale
VI. Product Comparisons
VII. Export Price and Constructed Export Price
VIII. Normal Value
IX. Currency Conversion
X. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2020-24829 Filed 11-6-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P