Aluminum Extrusions from the People's Republic of China: Initiation of Antidumping Duty Investigation, 22109-22114 [2010-9743]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
• International Trade Administration

[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 80 (Tuesday, April 27, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22109-22114]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-9743]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-967]


Aluminum Extrusions from the People's Republic of China: 
Initiation of Antidumping Duty Investigation

EFFECTIVE DATE: April 27, 2010.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Hollwitz, Andrea Staebler Berton 
or Charles Riggle, AD/CVD Operations, Office 8, (202) 482-2336, (202) 
482-4037 or (202) 482-0650, respectively; Import Administration, 
International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th 
Street and Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20230.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On March 31, 2010, the Department of 
Commerce (the ``Department'') received a petition concerning imports of 
aluminum extrusions from the People's Republic of China (``PRC'') filed 
in proper form by the Aluminum Extrusions Fair Trade Committee,\1\ and 
the United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, 
Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union 
(collectively, ``Petitioners''). See Petitions for the Imposition of 
Antidumping and Countervailing Duties: Aluminum Extrusions from the 
People's Republic of China dated March 31, 2010 (``Petition''). On 
April 6 and April 7, 2010, the Department issued requests for 
information and clarification of certain areas of the Petition. 
Petitioners timely filed additional information on April 9, 2010,\2\ 
and on April 19, 2010.\3\ On April 14, 2010, the Department asked 
Petitioners additional questions regarding the re-bracketing of certain 
information. Petitioners responded to the Department's questions in the 
Second Supplement to the AD Petition, dated April 15, 2010 (``Second 
Supplement to the AD Petition'').
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    \1\ The Aluminum Extrusions fair Trade Committee is comprised of 
Aerolite Extrusion Company, Alexandria Extrusion Company, Benada 
Aluminum of Florida, Inc., William L. Bonnell Company, Inc., 
Frontier Aluminum Corporation, Futura Industries Corporation, Hydro 
Aluminum North America, Inc., Kaiser Aluminum Corporation, Profile 
Extrusions Company, Sapa Extrusions, Inc. and Western Extrusions 
Corporation.
    \2\ See Aluminum Extrusions from the People's Republic of China: 
Petitioner's Response to the Department's April 6, 2010, Request for 
Clarification of Certain Items Contained in the Petition, dated 
April 9, 2010 (``Supplement to General Issues Petition'').
    \3\ See Aluminum Extrusions from the People's Republic of China: 
Petitioner's Response to the Department's April 7, 2010, Request for 
Clarification of Certain Items Contained in the Petition, dated 
April 19, 2010 (``Supplement to the AD Petition'').
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    The period of investigation (``POI'') is July 1, 2009, through 
December 31, 2009. See 19 CFR 351.204(b)(1).
    In accordance with section 732(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, (``the 
Act''), Petitioners allege that imports of

[[Page 22110]]

aluminum extrusions from the PRC are being, or are likely to be, sold 
in the United States at less than fair value, within the meaning of 
section 731 of the Act, and that such imports are materially injuring, 
or threatening material injury to, an industry in the United States.
    The Department finds that Petitioners filed the Petition on behalf 
of the domestic industry because Petitioners are an interested party, 
as defined in section 771(9)(C), (D), and (F) of the Act, and have 
demonstrated sufficient industry support with respect to the 
antidumping duty investigation that Petitioners are requesting the 
Department to initiate (see ``Determination of Industry Support for the 
Petition'' section below).

Scope of the Investigation

    The products covered by this investigation are aluminum extrusions 
from the PRC. For a full description of the scope of the investigation, 
please see ``Scope of Investigation,'' in Appendix I of this notice.

Comments on Scope of the Investigation

    During our review of the Petition, we discussed the scope with 
Petitioners to ensure that it is an accurate reflection of the products 
for which the domestic industry is seeking relief. Moreover, as 
discussed in the preamble to the regulations (Antidumping Duties; 
Countervailing Duties; Final Rule, 62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997)), 
we are setting aside a period for interested parties to raise issues 
regarding product coverage. The Department encourages interested 
parties to submit such comments by Monday, May 10, 2010, which is 
twenty calendar days from the signature date of this notice. Comments 
should be addressed to Import Administration's APO/Dockets Unit, Room 
1870, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, 
NW, Washington, DC 20230. The period of scope consultations is intended 
to provide the Department with ample opportunity to consider all 
comments and to consult with parties prior to the issuance of the 
preliminary determination.

Comments on Product Characteristics for Antidumping Duty Questionnaires

    We are requesting comments from interested parties regarding the 
appropriate physical characteristics of aluminum extrusions to be 
reported in response to the Department's antidumping questionnaires. 
This information will be used to identify the key physical 
characteristics of the merchandise under consideration in order to more 
accurately report the relevant factors and costs of production, as well 
as to develop appropriate product comparison criteria.
    Interested parties may provide information or comments that they 
believe are relevant to the development of an accurate listing of 
physical characteristics. Specifically, they may provide comments as to 
which characteristics are appropriate to use as: 1) general product 
characteristics; and 2) the product comparison criteria. We note that 
it is not always appropriate to use all product characteristics as 
product comparison criteria. We base product comparison criteria on 
meaningful commercial differences among products. In other words, while 
there may be some physical product characteristics utilized by 
manufacturers to describe aluminum extrusions, it may be that only a 
select few product characteristics take into account commercially 
meaningful physical characteristics. In addition, interested parties 
may comment on the order in which the physical characteristics should 
be used in product matching. Generally, the Department attempts to list 
the most important physical characteristics first and the least 
important characteristics last.
    In order to consider the suggestions of interested parties in 
developing and issuing the antidumping duty questionnaires, we must 
receive comments at the above-referenced address by May 10, 2010. 
Additionally, rebuttal comments must be received by May 17, 2010.

Determination of Industry Support for the Petition

    Section 732(b)(1) of the Act requires that a petition be filed on 
behalf of the domestic industry. Section 732(c)(4)(A) of the Act 
provides that a petition meets this requirement if the domestic 
producers or workers who support the petition account for: (i) at least 
25 percent of the total production of the domestic like product; and 
(ii) more than 50 percent of the production of the domestic like 
product produced by that portion of the industry expressing support 
for, or opposition to, the petition. Moreover, section 732(c)(4)(D) of 
the Act provides that, if the petition does not establish support of 
domestic producers or workers accounting for more than 50 percent of 
the total production of the domestic like product, the Department 
shall: (i) poll the industry or rely on other information in order to 
determine if there is support for the petition, as required by 
subparagraph (A); or (ii) determine industry support using a 
statistically valid sampling method to poll the industry.
    Section 771(4)(A) of the Act defines the ``industry'' as the 
producers as a whole of a domestic like product. Thus, to determine 
whether a petition has the requisite industry support, the statute 
directs the Department to look to producers and workers who produce the 
domestic like product. The U.S. International Trade Commission 
(``ITC''), which is responsible for determining whether ``the domestic 
industry'' has been injured, must also determine what constitutes a 
domestic like product in order to define the industry. While both the 
Department and the ITC must apply the same statutory definition 
regarding the domestic like product (see section 771(10) of the Act), 
they do so for different purposes and pursuant to a separate and 
distinct authority. In addition, the Department's determination is 
subject to limitations of time and information. Although this may 
result in different definitions of the like product, such differences 
do not render the decision of either agency contrary to law. See USEC, 
Inc. v. United States, 132 F. Supp. 2d 1, 8 (CIT 2001), citing Algoma 
Steel Corp., Ltd. v. United States, 688 F. Supp. 639, 644 (CIT 1988), 
aff'd 865 F.2d 240 (Fed. Cir. 1989), cert. denied 492 U.S. 919 (1989).
    Section 771(10) of the Act defines the domestic like product as ``a 
product which is like, or in the absence of like, most similar in 
characteristics and uses with, the article subject to an investigation 
under this title.'' Thus, the reference point from which the domestic 
like product analysis begins is ``the article subject to an 
investigation'' (i.e., the class or kind of merchandise to be 
investigated, which normally will be the scope as defined in the 
petition).
    With regard to the domestic like product, Petitioners do not offer 
a definition of domestic like product distinct from the scope of the 
investigation. Based on our analysis of the information submitted on 
the record, we have determined that aluminum extrusions constitute a 
single domestic like product and we have analyzed industry support in 
terms of that domestic like product. For a discussion of the domestic 
like product analysis in this case, see Antidumping Duty Investigation 
Initiation Checklist: Aluminum Extrusions from the People's Republic of 
China (``Checklist''), at Attachment II, Industry Support, on file in 
the Central Records Unit, Room 1117 of the main Department of Commerce 
building.
    In determining whether Petitioners have standing under section

[[Page 22111]]

732(c)(4)(A) of the Act, we considered the industry support data 
contained in the Petition with reference to the domestic like product 
as defined in the ``Scope of Investigations'' section above. To 
establish industry support, Petitioners provided their production of 
the domestic like product in 2009. See Volume I of the Petition at 
Exhibit I-3. In addition Petitioners provided letters of support from 
ten additional companies that produce the domestic like product. See 
id. Petitioners compared their production and the production of the 
supporters of the Petition to the estimated total production of the 
domestic like product for the entire domestic industry. See Volume I of 
the Petition at 3-4 and Exhibits I-3 and I-4. Petitioners estimated 
total industry production of the domestic like product for 2009 using 
industry wide shipment data from the Aluminum Association, which 
according to Petitioners is ``an independent and authoritative source 
for aluminum industry data.'' See Volume I of the Petition, at 3. We 
have relied upon data Petitioners provided for purposes of measuring 
industry support. For further discussion, see Checklist at Attachment 
II.
    Our review of the data provided in the Petition, supplemental 
submissions, and other information readily available to the Department 
indicates that Petitioners have established industry support. First, 
the Petition established support from domestic producers (or workers) 
accounting for more than 50 percent of the total production of the 
domestic like product and, as such, the Department is not required to 
take further action in order to evaluate industry support (e.g., 
polling). See Section 732(c)(4)(D) of the Act, and Checklist at 
Attachment 2. Second, the domestic producers (or workers) have met the 
statutory criteria for industry support under section 732(c)(4)(A)(i) 
of the Act because the domestic producers (or workers) who support the 
Petition account for at least 25 percent of the total production of the 
domestic like product. See Checklist at Attachment II. Finally, the 
domestic producers (or workers) have met the statutory criteria for 
industry support under section 732(c)(4)(A)(ii) of the Act because the 
domestic producers (or workers) who support the Petition account for 
more than 50 percent of the production of the domestic like product 
produced by that portion of the industry expressing support for, or 
opposition to, the Petition. Accordingly, the Department determines 
that the Petition was filed on behalf of the domestic industry within 
the meaning of section 732(b)(1) of the Act. See id.
    The Department finds that Petitioners filed the Petition on behalf 
of the domestic industry because it is an interested party as defined 
in section 771(9)(C), (D), and (F) of the Act and it has demonstrated 
sufficient industry support with respect to the antidumping duty 
investigation that it is requesting the Department initiate. See id.

Allegations and Evidence of Material Injury and Causation

    Petitioners alleged that the U.S. industry producing the domestic 
like product is being materially injured, or is threatened with 
material injury, by reason of the imports of the subject merchandise 
sold at less than normal value (``NV''). In addition, Petitioners 
alleged that subject imports exceed the negligibility threshold 
provided for under section 771(24)(A) of the Act.
    Petitioners contended that the industry's injured condition is 
illustrated by reduced market share, increased raw material cost, 
declining capacity, production, shipments, underselling and price 
depression or suppression, reduced employment, hours worked, and wages 
paid, declines in financial performance, lost sales and revenue, and an 
increase in import penetration. See Volume I of the Petition, at 16, 
19-27, 30-33, and Exhibits I-10 through I-15, III-33; and Supplement to 
AD/CVD Petitions, dated April 9, 2010, at 8-9, and Attachment 4. We 
have assessed the allegations and supporting evidence regarding 
material injury, threat of material injury, and causation, and have 
determined that these allegations are properly supported by adequate 
evidence and meet the statutory requirements for initiation. See 
Checklist at Attachment III.

Allegations of Sales at Less Than Fair Value

    The following is a description of the allegations of sales at less 
than fair value upon which the Department based its decision to 
initiate this investigation of imports of aluminum extrusions from the 
PRC. The sources of data for the deductions and adjustments relating to 
the U.S. price and the factors of production are also discussed in the 
initiation checklist. See Checklist.

U.S. Price

    Petitioners calculated export price (``EP'') based on documentation 
of offers for
    sale obtained from a confidential source. See Checklist; see also 
Volume II of the Petition, at 1 and Exhibits II-1 and II-2. Based on 
the terms of sale, Petitioners adjusted the export price for brokerage 
and handling and foreign domestic inland freight. See Checklist; see 
also Volume II of the Petition, at 1-2 and Exhibits II-2 and II-3.

Normal Value

    Petitioners claim the PRC is a non-market economy (``NME'') country 
and that no determination to the contrary has been made by the 
Department. See Volume II of the Petition, at 2. In accordance with 
section 771(18)(C)(i) of the Act, the presumption of NME status remains 
in effect until revoked by the Department. The presumption of NME 
status for the PRC has not been revoked by the Department and, 
therefore, remains in effect for purposes of the initiation of this 
investigation. Accordingly, the NV of the product for the PRC 
investigation is appropriately based on factors of production valued in 
a surrogate market-economy country in accordance with section 773(c) of 
the Act. In the course of this investigation, all parties, including 
the public, will have the opportunity to provide relevant information 
related to the issue of the PRC's NME status and the granting of 
separate rates to individual exporters.
    Petitioners contend that India is the appropriate surrogate country 
for the PRC because: 1) it is at a level of economic development 
comparable to that of the PRC and 2) it is a significant producer and 
exporter of comparable merchandise. See Volume II of the Petition, at 
3-5, and Exhibits II-4 and II-16. Based on the information provided by 
Petitioners, we believe that it is appropriate to use India as a 
surrogate country for initiation purposes. After initiation of the 
investigation, interested parties will have the opportunity to submit 
comments regarding surrogate country selection and, pursuant to 19 CFR 
351.301(c)(3)(i), will be provided an opportunity to submit publicly 
available information to value factors of production within 40 days 
after the date of publication of the preliminary determination.
    Petitioners calculated NV and the dumping margins using the 
Department's NME methodology as required by 19 CFR 351.202(b)(7)(i)(C) 
and 19 CFR 351.408. In calculating NV, Petitioners based the quantity 
of each of the inputs used to manufacture aluminum extrusions in the 
PRC on product-specific production costs and/or consumption rates of an 
aluminum extrusions producer in the United States (``Surrogate Domestic 
Producer'') for identical or similar merchandise during the POI. See 
Volume II of the Petition, at 5-8 and Exhibits II-2, II-6, II-7 and

[[Page 22112]]

II-9. Petitioners state that the actual usage rates of the foreign 
manufacturers of aluminum extrusions are not reasonably available; 
however, Petitioners note that according to the information available, 
the production of aluminum extrusions relies on similar production 
methods to the Surrogate Domestic Producer. See Volume II of the 
Petition, at 5 and Exhibit II-8.
    As noted above, Petitioners determined the consumption quantities 
of all raw materials based on the production experience of the 
Surrogate Domestic Producer. Petitioners valued most of the factors of 
production based on reasonably available, public surrogate country 
data, specifically, Indian import statistics from the Global Trade 
Atlas (``GTA''). See Volume II of the Petition, at 6-8; see also Second 
Supplement to the AD Petition, at Exhibit S-2. Petitioners excluded 
from these import statistics imports from countries previously 
determined by the Department to be NME countries. Petitioners also 
excluded import statistics from Indonesia, the Republic of Korea, and 
Thailand, as the Department has previously excluded prices from these 
countries because they maintain broadly available, non-industry-
specific export subsidies. See Second Supplement to the AD Petition, at 
Exhibit S-2. Petitioners valued certain other factors of production 
using price data obtained from the Bombay Metal Exchange, as published 
by Reuters India. See Volume II of the Petition, at 7, and Second 
Supplement to the AD Petition, at Exhibit S-1. In addition, Petitioners 
made currency conversions, where necessary, based on the POI-average 
rupee/U.S. dollar exchange rate, as reported on the Department's web 
site. See Volume II of the Petition, at 7 and Exhibit II-11. 
Petitioners determined labor costs using the labor consumption, in 
hours, derived from the Surrogate Domestic Producer's experience. See 
Volume II of the Petition, at 7 and Exhibits II-6 and II-9. Petitioners 
valued labor costs using the Department's NME Wage Rate for the PRC at 
https://ia.ita.doc.gov/wages/07wages/final/final-2009-2007-wages.html. 
See Volume II of the Petition, at 7 and Exhibit II-13. For purposes of 
initiation, the Department determines that the surrogate values used by 
Petitioners are reasonably available and, thus, acceptable for purposes 
of initiation.
    Petitioners determined electricity costs using the electricity 
consumption, in kilowatt hours, derived from the Surrogate Domestic 
Producer's experience. See Volume II of the Petition, at 7 and Exhibit 
II-14; see also Supplement to the AD Petition at Exhibit S-3. 
Petitioners valued electricity using the Indian electricity rate 
reported by the Central Electric Authority of the Government of India. 
See Supplement to the AD Petition, at 7 and Exhibit S-3. Petitioners 
determined natural gas costs using the natural gas consumption, in 
million British thermal units (``mmBtu''), derived from the Surrogate 
Domestic Producer's experience. See Volume II of the Petition, at 8, 
and Exhibit II-6 and II-9. Petitioners valued natural gas using the 
same methodology the Department used in the recent initiation of 
Certain Coated Paper Suitable for High-Quality Print Graphics Using 
Sheet-Fed Presses from Indonesia and the People's Republic of China, 
which was based on Indian import statistics. See Volume II of the 
Petition, at 8 and Exhibit II-15.
    Petitioners determined packing costs using data from the GTA, 
derived from the Surrogate Domestic Producer's experience. See Volume 
II of the Petition, at Exhibit II-6; see also Supplement to the AD 
Petition, at 4 and Exhibits S-4 and S-6.
    Petitioners based factory overhead, selling, general and 
administrative expenses, and profit on data from Jindal Aluminium, 
Ltd., a producer of aluminum extrusions, for the 2008 2009 fiscal year. 
See Volume II of the Petition, at 8 and Exhibit II-16.

Fair-Value Comparisons

    Based on the data provided by Petitioners, there is reason to 
believe that imports of aluminum extrusions from the PRC are being, or 
are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value. 
Based on a comparison of U.S. prices and NV calculated in accordance 
with section 773(c) of the Act, as described above, the estimated 
dumping margins for aluminum extrusions from the PRC range from 32.57 
percent to 33.32 percent. See Checklist and Second Supplement to the AD 
Petition at Exhibit S-2.

Initiation of Antidumping Investigation

    Based upon the examination of the Petition on aluminum extrusions 
from the PRC, the Department finds the Petition meets the requirements 
of section 732 of the Act. Therefore, we are initiating an antidumping 
duty investigation to determine whether imports of aluminum extrusions 
from the PRC are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States 
at less than fair value. In accordance with section 733(b)(1)(A) of the 
Act and 19 CFR 351.205(b)(1), unless postponed, we will make our 
preliminary determinations no later than 140 days after the date of 
this initiation.

Targeted Dumping Allegations

    On December 10, 2008, the Department issued an interim final rule 
for the purpose of withdrawing 19 CFR 351.414(f) and (g), the 
regulatory provisions governing the targeted dumping analysis in 
antidumping duty investigations, and the corresponding regulation 
governing the deadline for targeted dumping allegations, 19 CFR 
351.301(d)(5). See Withdrawal of the Regulatory Provisions Governing 
Targeted Dumping in Antidumping Duty Investigations, 73 FR 74930 
(December 10, 2008). The Department stated that ``withdrawal will allow 
the Department to exercise the discretion intended by the statute and, 
thereby, develop a practice that will allow interested parties to 
pursue all statutory avenues of relief in this area.'' Id. at 74931.
    In order to accomplish this objective, if any interested party 
wishes to make a targeted dumping allegation in this investigation 
pursuant to section 777A(d)(1)(B) of the Act, such allegation is due no 
later than 45 days before the scheduled date of the preliminary 
determination.

Respondent Selection

    For this investigation, the Department will request quantity and 
value information from known exporters and producers identified with 
complete contact information in the Petition. The quantity and value 
data received from NME exporters/producers will be used as the basis to 
select the mandatory respondents.
    The Department requires that the respondents submit a response to 
both the quantity and value questionnaire and the separate-rate 
application by the respective deadlines in order to receive 
consideration for separate-rate status. See Circular Welded Austenitic 
Stainless Pressure Pipe from the People's Republic of China: Initiation 
of Antidumping Duty Investigation, 73 FR 10221, 10225 (February 26, 
2008); Initiation of Antidumping Duty Investigation: Certain Artist 
Canvas From the People's Republic of China, 70 FR 21996, 21999 (April 
28, 2005). On the date of the publication of this initiation notice in 
the Federal Register, the Department will post the quantity and value 
questionnaire along with the filing instructions on the Import 
Administration web site at https://ia.ita.doc.gov/ia-highlights-and-news.html, and a response to the quantity and value questionnaire is 
due no later than May 11, 2010. Also, the

[[Page 22113]]

Department will send the quantity and value questionnaire to those PRC 
companies identified in the Petition in Volume I of the Petition, at 
Exhibit I-8.
    Interested parties must submit applications for disclosure under 
APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305. Instructions for filing such 
applications may be found on the Department's web site at https://ia.ita.doc.gov/apo.

Separate Rates Application

    In order to obtain separate-rate status in NME investigations, 
exporters and producers must submit a separate-rate status application. 
See Policy Bulletin 05.1: Separate-Rates Practice and Application of 
Combination Rates in Antidumping Investigations involving Non-Market 
Economy Countries, dated April 5, 2005 (``Policy Bulletin''), available 
on the Department's web site at https://ia.ita.doc.gov/policy/bull05-1.pdf. Based on our experience in processing the separate-rate 
applications in previous antidumping duty investigations, we have 
modified the application for this investigation to make it more 
administrable and easier for applicants to complete. See, e.g., 
Initiation of Antidumping Duty Investigation: Certain New Pneumatic 
Off-the-Road Tires From the People's Republic of China, 72 FR 43591, 
43594-95 (August 6, 2007). The specific requirements for submitting the 
separate-rate application in this investigation are outlined in detail 
in the application itself, which will be available on the Department's 
web site at https://ia.ita.doc.gov/ia-highlights-and-news.html on the 
date of publication of this initiation notice in the Federal Register. 
The separate-rate application will be due 60 days after publication of 
this initiation notice. For exporters and producers who submit a 
separate-rate status application and subsequently are selected as 
mandatory respondents, these exporters and producers will no longer be 
eligible for consideration for separate rate status unless they respond 
to all parts of the questionnaire as mandatory respondents. As noted in 
the ``Respondent Selection'' section above, the Department requires 
that respondents submit a response to both the quantity and value 
questionnaire and the separate rate application by the respective 
deadlines in order to receive consideration for separate-rate status.

Use of Combination Rates in an NME Investigation

    The Department will calculate combination rates for certain 
respondents that are eligible for a separate rate in this 
investigation. The Policy Bulletin states:
    {{time} hile continuing the practice of assigning separate rates 
only to exporters, all separate rates that the Department will now 
assign in its NME investigations will be specific to those producers 
that supplied the exporter during the period of investigation. Note, 
however, that one rate is calculated for the exporter and all of the 
producers which supplied subject merchandise to it during the period of 
investigation. This practice applies both to mandatory respondents 
receiving an individually calculated separate rate as well as the pool 
of non-investigated firms receiving the weighted-average of the 
individually calculated rates. This practice is referred to as the 
application of ``combination rates'' because such rates apply to 
specific combinations of exporters and one or more producers. The cash-
deposit rate assigned to an exporter will apply only to merchandise 
both exported by the firm in question and produced by a firm that 
supplied the exporter during the period of investigation.
See Policy Bulletin at 6 (emphasis added).

Distribution of Copies of the Petition

    In accordance with section 732(b)(3)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 
351.202(f), copies of the public versions of the Petition have been 
provided to the representatives of the Government of the PRC. Because 
of the large number of producers/exporters identified in the Petition, 
the Department considers the service of the public version of the 
Petition to the foreign producers/exporters satisfied by the delivery 
of the public version to the Government of the PRC, consistent with 19 
CFR 351.203(c)(2).

ITC Notification

    We have notified the ITC of our initiations, as required by section 
732(d) of the Act.

Preliminary Determinations by the ITC

    The ITC will preliminarily determine, no later than May 17, 2010, 
whether there is a reasonable indication that imports of aluminum 
extrusions from the PRC are materially injuring, or threatening 
material injury to a U.S. industry. A negative ITC determination will 
result in the investigation being terminated; otherwise, this 
investigation will proceed according to statutory and regulatory time 
limits.
    This notice is issued and published pursuant to section 777(i) of 
the Act.

    Dated: April 20, 2010.
Ronald K. Lorentzen,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.

Attachment I

Scope of the Investigations

The merchandise covered by these investigations is aluminum extrusions 
which are shapes and forms, produced by an extrusion process, made from 
aluminum alloys having metallic elements corresponding to the alloy 
series designations published by The Aluminum Association commencing 
with the numbers 1, 3, and 6 (or proprietary equivalents or other 
certifying body equivalents). Specifically, the subject merchandise 
made from aluminum alloy with an Aluminum Association series 
designation commencing with the number 1 contains not less than 99 
percent aluminum by weight. The subject merchandise made from aluminum 
alloy with an Aluminum Association series designation commencing with 
the number 3 contains manganese as the major alloying element, with 
manganese accounting for not more than 3.0 percent of total materials 
by weight. The subject merchandise made from an aluminum alloy with an 
Aluminum Association series designation commencing with the number 6 
contains magnesium and silicon as the major alloying elements, with 
magnesium accounting for at least 0.1 percent but not more than 2.0 
percent of total materials by weight, and silicon accounting for at 
least 0.1 percent but not more than 3.0 percent of total materials by 
weight. The subject aluminum extrusions are properly identified by a 
four-digit alloy series without either a decimal point or leading 
letter. Illustrative examples from among the approximately 160 
registered alloys that may characterize the subject merchandise are as 
follows: 1350, 3003, and 6060.
Aluminum extrusions are produced and imported in a wide variety of 
shapes and forms, including, but not limited to, hollow profiles, other 
solid profiles, pipes, tubes, bars, and rods. Aluminum extrusions that 
are drawn subsequent to extrusion (``drawn aluminum'') are also 
included in the scope.
Aluminum extrusions are produced and imported with a variety of 
finishes (both coatings and surface treatments), and types of 
fabrication. The types of coatings and treatments applied to subject 
aluminum extrusions include,

[[Page 22114]]

but are not limited to, extrusions that are mill finished (i.e., 
without any coating or further finishing), brushed, buffed, polished, 
anodized (including bright-dip anodized), liquid painted, or powder 
coated. Aluminum extrusions may also be fabricated, i.e., prepared for 
assembly. Such operations would include, but are not limited to, 
extrusions that are cut-to-length, machined, drilled, punched, notched, 
bent, stretched, knurled, swedged, mitered, chamfered, threaded, and 
spun. The subject merchandise includes aluminum extrusions that are 
finished (coated, painted, etc.), fabricated, or any combination 
thereof.
Subject aluminum extrusions may be described at the time of importation 
as parts for final finished products that are assembled after 
importation, including, but not limited to, window frames, door frames, 
solar panels, curtain walls, or furniture. Such parts that otherwise 
meet the definition of aluminum extrusions are included in the scope. 
The scope includes aluminum extrusions that are attached (e.g., by 
welding or fasteners) to form subassemblies, i.e., partially assembled 
merchandise.
Subject extrusions may be identified with reference to their end use, 
such as heat sinks, door thresholds, or carpet trim. Such goods are 
subject merchandise if they otherwise meet the scope definition, 
regardless of whether they are finished products and ready for use at 
the time of importation.
The following aluminum extrusion products are excluded: aluminum 
extrusions made from aluminum alloy with an Aluminum Association series 
designations commencing with the number 2 and containing in excess of 
1.5 percent copper by weight; aluminum extrusions made from aluminum 
alloy with an Aluminum Association series designation commencing with 
the number 5 and containing in excess of 1.0 percent magnesium by 
weight; and aluminum extrusions made from aluminum alloy with an 
Aluminum Association series designation commencing with the number 7 
and containing in excess of 2.0 percent zinc by weight.
The scope also excludes finished merchandise containing aluminum 
extrusions as parts that are fully and permanently assembled and 
completed at the time of entry, such as finished windows with glass, 
doors, picture frames, and solar panels. The scope also excludes 
finished goods containing aluminum extrusions that are entered 
unassembled in a ``kit.'' A kit is understood to mean a packaged 
combination of parts that contains, at the time of importation, all of 
the necessary parts to fully assemble a final finished good.
The scope also excludes aluminum alloy sheet or plates produced by 
other than the extrusion process, such as aluminum products produced by 
a method of casting. Cast aluminum products are properly identified by 
four digits with a decimal point between the third and fourth digit. A 
letter may also precede the four digits. The following Aluminum 
Association designations are representative of aluminum alloys for 
casting: 208.0, 295.0, 308.0, 355.0, C355.0, 356.0, A356.0, A357.0, 
360.0, 366.0, 380.0, A380.0, 413.0, 443.0, 514.0, 518.1, and 712.0. The 
scope also excludes pure, unwrought aluminum in any form.
Imports of the subject merchandise are provided for under the following 
categories of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States 
(``HTS''): 7604.21.0000, 7604.29.1000, 7604.29.3010, 7604.29.3050, 
7604.29.5030, 7604.29.5060, 7608.20.0030, and 7608.20.0090. The subject 
merchandise entered as parts of other aluminum products may be 
classifiable under the following additional Chapter 76 subheadings: 
7610.10, 7610.90, 7615.19, 7615.20, and 7616.99 as well as under other 
HTS chapters. While HTS subheadings are provided for convenience and 
customs purposes, the written description of the scope in this 
proceeding is dispositive.
[FR Doc. 2010-9743 Filed 4-26-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-S