Aluminum Extrusions From the People's Republic of China: Countervailing Duty Order, 30653-30655 [2011-13103]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
• International Trade Administration

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 102 (Thursday, May 26, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30653-30655]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-13103]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[C-570-968]


Aluminum Extrusions From the People's Republic of China: 
Countervailing Duty Order

AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.

DATES: Effective Date: May 26, 2011.

SUMMARY: Based on affirmative final determinations by the Department of 
Commerce (the ``Department'') and the International Trade Commission 
(``ITC''), the Department is issuing a countervailing duty order on 
aluminum extrusions from the People's Republic of China (``PRC'').

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Conniff, AD/CVD Operations, 
Office 3, Import Administration, International Trade Administration, 
U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20230; telephone: 202/482-1009. Case History: On April 
4, 2011, the Department published its final determination in the 
countervailing duty investigation of aluminum extrusions from the PRC. 
See Aluminum Extrusions From the People's Republic of China: Final 
Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination, 76 FR 18521, (April 4, 
2011) (Final Determination).
    On May 13, 2010, the ITC notified the Department of its affirmative 
determination of material injury by reason of imports of certain 
aluminum extrusions from the PRC, and its negative determination of 
material injury, threat of material injury, or that the establishment 
of an industry is not materially retarded by reason of imports of 
finished heat sinks from the PRC. See Aluminum Extrusions from China 
(Investigation No. 731-TA-1177, USITC Publication 4229 (May 2011) (ITC 
Final Determination)).

Revision of Scope

    On April 4, 2011, the Department published its affirmative final 
determination in this proceeding. See Final Determination. On May 13, 
2011, the ITC notified the Department of its affirmative finding of 
injury with respect to imports of certain aluminum extrusions from the 
PRC and its negative injury finding with respect to imports of finished 
heat sinks from the PRC. Therefore, the Department is revising the 
scope of the subject merchandise stated in the final determination to 
exclude finished heat sinks from the scope of the order. In its 
instructions to the investigation questionnaire, the ITC described heat 
sinks as a subset of aluminum extrusions typically used in electronic 
equipment as a thermal controlling tool and stated that they are 
usually referred to as (1) heat sink blanks, (2) fabricated heat sinks, 
or (3) finished heat sinks.\1\ Heat sink blanks are the full length 
aluminum extrusions used to produce finished heat sinks. These are 
generally the pre-fabricated, pre-tested inputs in the production of 
heat sinks (post any stretching or aging processes applied). Fabricated 
heat sinks are generally understood to be any heat sink blank that has 
been cut-to-length, precision machined, and or otherwise fabricated to 
the end product specifications, but not yet tested, assembled onto 
other materials, or packaged. Finished heat sinks differ from 
fabricated heat sinks in that they have been fully, albeit not 
necessarily individually, tested and assured to comply with the 
required thermal performance end-use specifications. Only finished heat 
sinks are excluded from the scope of the order.\2\ See Scope of the 
Order, below.
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    \1\ See INSTRUCTION BOOKLET: GENERAL INFORMATION, INSTRUCTIONS, 
AND DEFINITIONS FOR COMMISSION QUESTIONNAIRES Aluminum Extrusions 
from China Inv. Nos. 701-TA-475 and 731-TA-1177 (Final) at 6-7, 
located at: https://www.usitc.gov/trade_remedy/731_ad_701_cvd/investigations/2010/aluminum_extrusions/final/PDF/_Instructions_US.pdf.
    \2\ See id.
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Scope of the Order

    The merchandise covered by this order 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

[[Page 30654]]

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 is 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, 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 the aluminum extrusion components that 
are attached (e.g., by welding or fasteners) to form subassemblies, 
i.e., partially assembled merchandise unless imported as part of the 
finished goods ``kit'' defined further below. The scope does not 
include the non-aluminum extrusion components of subassemblies or 
subject kits.
    Subject extrusions may be identified with reference to their end 
use, such as fence posts, electrical conduits, door thresholds, carpet 
trim, or heat sinks (that do not meet the finished heat sink 
exclusionary language below). Such goods are subject merchandise if 
they otherwise meet the scope definition, regardless of whether they 
are 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 with glass or vinyl, picture frames with glass pane and backing 
material, and solar panels. The scope also excludes finished goods 
containing aluminum extrusions that are entered unassembled in a 
``finished goods kit.'' A finished goods 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 and requires no further finishing or fabrication, such as 
cutting or punching, and is assembled ``as is'' into a finished 
product. An imported product will not be considered a ``finished goods 
kit'' and therefore excluded from the scope of the investigation merely 
by including fasteners such as screws, bolts, etc. in the packaging 
with an aluminum extrusion product.
    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.
    The scope also excludes collapsible tubular containers composed of 
metallic elements corresponding to alloy code 1080A as designated by 
the Aluminum Association where the tubular container (excluding the 
nozzle) meets each of the following dimensional characteristics: (1) 
Length of 37 mm or 62 mm, (2) outer diameter of 11.0 mm or 12.7 mm, and 
(3) wall thickness not exceeding 0.13 mm. Also excluded from the scope 
of this order are finished heat sinks. Finished heat sinks are 
fabricated heat sinks made from aluminum extrusions the design and 
production of which are organized around meeting certain specified 
thermal performance requirements and which have been fully, albeit not 
necessarily individually, tested to comply with such requirements.
    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. In addition, fin evaporator coils 
may be classifiable under HTS numbers: 8418.99.80.50 and 8418.99.80.60. 
While HTS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs 
purposes, the written description of the scope of the order is 
dispositive.

Countervailing Duty Order

    On September 7, 2010, the Department published its Preliminary 
Determination and instructed U.S. Customs and Border Protection 
(``CBP'') to suspend liquidation of all entries of subject merchandise 
entered or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption, on or after 
September 7, 2010. See Aluminum Extrusions from

[[Page 30655]]

the People's Republic of China: Preliminary Affirmative Countervailing 
Duty Determination, 75 FR 54302 (September 7, 2010) (Preliminary 
Determination). In accordance with section 703(d) of the Tariff Act of 
1930, as amended (``the Act''), which states that the suspension of 
liquidation pursuant to a preliminary determination may not remain in 
effect for more than four months, the Department terminated suspension 
of liquidation effective January 6, 2011.
    On April 4, 2011, the Department published its final determination 
in the countervailing duty investigation of aluminum extrusions from 
the PRC. See Final Determination. On May 13, 2011, in accordance with 
section 705(d) of the Act, the ITC notified the Department of its final 
determination that the industry in the United States producing aluminum 
extrusions is materially injured within the meaning of section 
705(b)(1)(A)(i) of the Act by reason of subsidized imports of aluminum 
extrusions from the PRC. See ITC Final Determination.
    In accordance with section 706(a)(1) of the Act, the Department 
will direct CBP to reinstitute suspension of liquidation effective the 
date of publication of the ITC final determination in the Federal 
Register. The Department will also direct CBP to assess, upon further 
advice by the Department 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 for the subject 
merchandise as noted below.

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             Company                    Ad valorem net subsidy rate
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Guang Ya Aluminum Industries Co.,  9.94 percent ad valorem.
 Ltd., Foshan Guangcheng Aluminum
 Co., Ltd., Guang Ya Aluminum
 Industries Hong Kong, Kong Ah
 International Company Limited,
 and Yongji Guanghai Aluminum
 Industry Co., Ltd. (collectively
 the Guang Ya Companies).
Zhaoqing New Zhongya Aluminum      8.02 percent ad valorem.
 Co., Ltd., Zhongya Shaped
 Aluminum HK Holding Ltd., and
 Karlton Aluminum Company Ltd.
 (collectively the Zhongya
 Companies).
Dragonluxe Limited...............  374.15 percent ad valorem.
Miland Luck Limited..............  374.15 percent ad valorem.
Liaoyang Zhongwang Aluminum        374.15 percent ad valorem.
 Profile Co. Ltd./Liaoning
 Zhongwang Group (collectively,
 the Zhongwang Group)..
All Others Rate..................  374.15 percent ad valorem.
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    This notice constitutes the countervailing duty order with respect 
to aluminum extrusions from the PRC, pursuant to section 706(a) of the 
Act. Interested parties may contact the Department's Central Records 
Unit, Room 7046 of the main Commerce building, for copies of an updated 
list of countervailing duty orders currently in effect.

Termination of Suspension of Liquidation for Finished Heat Sinks

    Because the ITC made a negative determination of material injury 
with respect to finished heat sinks, the Department will direct CBP to 
terminate the suspension of liquidation for entries of finished heat 
sinks from the PRC entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, and to release 
any bond or other security, and refund any cash deposit, posted to 
secure the payment of estimated countervailing duties with respect to 
these entries.
    This order is issued and published in accordance with section 
706(a) of the Act, 19 CFR 351.211(b) and 19 CFR 351.224(e).

    Dated: May 20, 2011.
Ronald K. Lorentzen,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 2011-13103 Filed 5-25-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P