Certain Stainless Steel Butt-Weld Pipe Fittings from Taiwan: Notice of Court Decision and Suspension of Liquidation, 38103 [E5-3473]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
• International Trade Administration

[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 126 (Friday, July 1, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Page 38103]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E5-3473]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-583-816]


Certain Stainless Steel Butt-Weld Pipe Fittings from Taiwan: 
Notice of Court Decision and Suspension of Liquidation

AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: On June 14, 2005, in Alloy Piping Products, Inc., Flowline 
Division, et al. v. United States, Slip Op. 05-69, (``Alloy Piping 
II''), the Court of International Trade (``CIT'') affirmed the 
Department of Commerce's (the ``Department'') Final Results of 
Determination Pursuant to Remand (``Remand Results''), dated February 
14, 2005. Consistent with the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for 
the Federal Circuit (``CAFC'') in Timken Co. v. United States, 893 F.2d 
337 (Fed. Cir. 1990) (``Timken''), the Department will continue to 
order the suspension of liquidation of the subject merchandise, where 
appropriate, until there is a ``conclusive'' decision in this case. If 
the case is not appealed, or if it is affirmed on appeal, the 
Department will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection 
(``Customs'') to liquidate all relevant entries from Ta Chen Stainless 
Steel Pipe, Ltd. (``Ta Chen'') and revise the cash deposit rates as 
appropriate.

EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2005.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alex Villanueva, AD/CVD Operations, 
Office 9, Import Administration, International Trade Administration, 
U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, 
DC 20230, telephone 202-482-3208, fax 202-482-9089.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Following publication of the Final Results, Alloy Piping Products, 
Inc., Flowline Division, Markovitz Enterprises, Inc., Gerlin Inc., and 
Taylor Forge Stainless Inc., (the ``Petitioners'') and Ta Chen, filed a 
lawsuit with the CIT challenging the Department's findings in Certain 
Stainless Steel Butt-Weld Pipe Fittings From Taiwan and Accompanying 
Issues and Decisions Memorandum; Final Results of 1999-2000 
Administrative Review, 66 FR 65899, 65900 (December 21, 2001) (``Final 
Results''). In Alloy Piping v. United States, Slip Op. 04-134, (CIT 
2004) (``Alloy Piping I''), the CIT instructed the Department to (1) 
reopen the record, seek additional relevant information regarding 
employee bonuses, and recalculate the general and administrative 
(``G&A'') expenses of Ta Chen; and (2) reconsider Ta Chen's U.S. 
indirect selling expenses and to account for all of Ta Chen's U.S. 
selling expenses incurred during fiscal year 1999. Specifically, 
regarding employee bonuses, the CIT instructed the Department to 
consider employee bonuses distributed directly from shareholders' 
equity, and paid by the company to its employees and management in its 
recalculation of the G&A expenses;
    The Draft Final Results Pursuant to Remand (``Draft Results'') were 
released to parties on January 27, 2005. The Department received 
comments from interested parties on the Draft Results on February 1, 
2005. There were no substantive changes made to the Remand Results as a 
result of comments received on the Draft Results. On February 14, 2005, 
the Department responded to the CIT's Order of Remand by filing the 
Remand Results. In its Remand Results, the Department reopened the 
record, sought additional relevant information regarding employee 
bonuses and recalculated the G&A expenses of Ta Chen to include bonuses 
to both employees and directors/supervisors. The Department also 
reconsidered Ta Chen's U.S. indirect selling expenses and determined 
that there was no need to add financial interest expenses to Ta Chen's 
U.S. indirect selling expenses. Thus, the Department did not change Ta 
Chen's U.S. indirect selling expenses.
    As a result of the remand determination, the antidumping duty rate 
for Ta Chen was decreased from 6.11 to 6.10 percent. The CIT did not 
receive comments from either the Petitioners or Ta Chen.
    On June 14, 2005, the CIT affirmed the Department's findings in the 
Remand Results. Specifically, the CIT upheld the Department reopening 
the record, seeking additional relevant information regarding employee 
bonuses, and recalculating the G&A expenses of Ta Chen and 
reconsidering Ta Chen's U.S. indirect selling expenses. See Alloy 
Piping II.
    The only revisions made to the Final Results were revisions to the 
calculation of Ta Chen's G&A expenses, as noted above. This revision 
resulted in a change in Ta Chen's margin.

Suspension of Liquidation

    The CAFC, in Timken, held that the Department must publish notice 
of a decision of the CIT or the CAFC which is not ``in harmony'' with 
the Department's final determination or results. Publication of this 
notice fulfills that obligation. The CAFC also held that the Department 
must suspend liquidation of the subject merchandise until there is a 
``conclusive'' decision in the case. Therefore, pursuant to Timken, the 
Department must continue to suspend liquidation pending the expiration 
of the period to appeal the CIT's June 14, 2005, decision, or, if that 
decision is appealed, pending a final decision by the CAFC. The 
Department will instruct Customs to revise cash deposit rates, as 
appropriate, and to liquidate relevant entries covering the subject 
merchandise effective (insert date of FR publication), in the event 
that the CIT's ruling is not appealed, or if appealed and upheld by the 
CAFC.

    Dated: June 24, 2005.
Joseph A. Spetrini,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. E5-3473 Filed 6-30-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-S