Certain Paper Shopping Bags From the People's Republic of China: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Countervailable Subsidies, Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances, and Alignment of Final Determination With Final Antidumping Duty Determination, 76180-76182 [2023-24473]
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76180
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 213 / Monday, November 6, 2023 / Notices
subject merchandise entered, or
withdrawn from warehouse, for
consumption on or after the date of
publication of the final results of this
administrative review, except, where
the rate calculated in the final results is
zero or de minimis, no cash deposit will
be required. For all non-reviewed firms,
we will instruct CBP to continue to
collect cash deposits at the most recent
company-specific or all-others rate
applicable to the company. These cash
deposit requirements, when imposed,
shall remain in effect until further
notice.
Notification to Interested Parties
These preliminary results are issued
and published pursuant to sections
751(a)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act, and 19
CFR 351.213(d)(4) and 19 CFR
351.221(b)(4).
Dated: October 31, 2023.
Lisa W. Wang,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and
Compliance.
Appendix
List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary
Decision Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Period of Review
IV. Partial Rescission of Administrative
Review
V. Scope of the Order
VI. Diversification of Korea’s Economy
VII. Subsidies Valuation Information
VIII. Analysis of Programs
IX. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2023–24475 Filed 11–3–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[C–570–153]
Certain Paper Shopping Bags From the
People’s Republic of China:
Preliminary Affirmative Determination
of Countervailable Subsidies,
Preliminary Affirmative Determination
of Critical Circumstances, and
Alignment of Final Determination With
Final Antidumping Duty Determination
Enforcement and Compliance,
International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of
Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily
determines that countervailable
subsidies are being provided to
producers and exporters of certain paper
shopping bags (paper bags) from the
People’s Republic of China (China). The
period of investigation (POI) is January
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AGENCY:
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1, 2022, through December 31, 2022.
Interested parties are invited to
comment on this preliminary
determination.
DATES: Applicable November 6, 2023.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Seth
Brown, AD/CVD Operations, Office IX,
Enforcement and Compliance,
International Trade Administration,
U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401
Constitution Avenue NW, Washington,
DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482–0029.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
This preliminary determination is
made in accordance with section 703(b)
of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended
(the Act). Commerce published the
notice of initiation of this countervailing
duty (CVD) investigation on June 26,
2023.1 On August 7, 2023, Commerce
postponed the preliminary
determination until October 30, 2023.2
For a complete description of the
events that followed the initiation of
this investigation, see the Preliminary
Decision Memorandum.3 A list of topics
discussed in the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum is included as Appendix
II 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 https://access.trade.gov/public/
FRNoticesListLayout.aspx.
Scope of the Investigation
The products covered by this
investigation are paper bags from China.
For a complete description of the scope
of this investigation, see Appendix I.
Scope Comments
In accordance with the preamble to
Commerce’s regulations,4 the Initiation
1 See
Certain Paper Shopping Bags from India
and the People’s Republic of China: Initiation of
Countervailing Duty Investigations, 88 FR 41380
(June 26, 2023) (Initiation Notice).
2 See Certain Paper Shopping Bags from the
People’s Republic of China and India:
Postponement of Preliminary Determinations in the
Countervailing Duty Investigations, 88 FR 52122
(August 7, 2023).
3 See Memorandum, ‘‘Decision Memorandum for
Preliminary Affirmative Determination of the
Countervailing Duty Investigation of Certain Paper
Shopping Bags from the People’s Republic of
China,’’ dated concurrently with, and hereby
adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision
Memorandum).
4 See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties,
Final Rule, 62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997).
PO 00000
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Sfmt 4703
Notice set aside a period of time for
parties to raise issues regarding product
coverage (scope).5 We received
comments from interested parties
commented on the scope of the
concurrent antidumping duty (AD) and
CVD investigations as it appeared in the
Initiation Notice, which are listed in the
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.6
We are currently evaluating the scope
comments filed by interested parties
and intend to issue our preliminary
decision regarding the scope of the AD
and CVD investigations prior to or
concurrently with the AD preliminary
determinations. We will incorporate the
scope decisions from the AD
investigations into the scope of the final
CVD determination for this
investigation, after considering any
relevant comments submitted in scope
case and rebuttal briefs.7
Preliminary Affirmative Determination
of Critical Circumstances
In accordance with section 703(e)(1)
of the Act, we preliminarily find that
critical circumstances exist with respect
to imports of subject merchandise for
Dongzheng Paper Bag (Dalian) Factory
(Dongzheng), Fujian Nanwang
Environment Protection Scien-tech Co.,
Ltd. (Fujian Nanwan) the nonresponsive companies,8 and all other
producers and/or exporters. For a full
discussion of our preliminary critical
circumstances determination, see the
‘‘Critical Circumstances’’ section of the
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
Methodology
Commerce is conducting this
investigation in accordance with section
701 of the Act. For each of the subsidy
programs found countervailable,
Commerce preliminarily determines
that there is a subsidy, i.e., a financial
contribution by an ‘‘authority’’ that
gives rise to a benefit to the recipient,
and that the subsidy is specific.9
Commerce notes that, in making these
findings, it relied, in part, on facts
5 See
Initiation Notice, 88 FR at 41380.
Preliminary Decision Memorandum at 2–3.
7 The deadline for interested parties to submit
scope case and rebuttal briefs will be established in
the preliminary scope decision memorandum.
8 The non-responsive companies are: (1) Bagitan
Packaging; (2) Changzhou Anjucheng; (3) Courage
Packaging; (4) Evertrust Packaging; (5) Geotegrity
EcoPack; (6) GrandIntelligent; (7) Li & Fung; (8)
Qindao Chenyu Packaging Co., Ltd.; (9) Shanghai
Macolink Supply Chain Management Co., Ltd.; (10)
Shanghai Sanxi Paper Co., Ltd.; (11) Xiamen C&D
Pulp & Paper Co., Ltd.; (12) Xiamen Champion
FMCG; (13) Xiamen New Idea Packaging Co., Ltd.;
and (14) Xiamen Wonderful Bag Import and Export
Co., Ltd.
9 See sections 771(5)(B) and (D) of the Act
regarding financial contribution; section 771(5)(E)
of the Act regarding benefit; and section 771(5A) of
the Act regarding specificity.
6 See
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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 213 / Monday, November 6, 2023 / Notices
available, and, because it finds that one
or more respondents did not act to the
best of their ability to respond to
Commerce’s requests for information, it
drew an adverse inference where
appropriate in selecting from among the
facts otherwise available.10 For further
information, see the ‘‘Use of Facts
Otherwise Available and Adverse
Inferences’’ section of the Preliminary
Decision Memorandum.
Alignment
In accordance with section 705(a)(1)
of the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(b)(4),
Commerce is aligning the final CVD
determination in this investigation with
the final determination in the
companion AD investigation of paper
bags from China based on a request
made by the Coalition for Fair Trade in
Shopping Bags (the petitioner).11
Consequently, the final CVD
determination will be issued on the
same date as the final AD
determination, which is currently
scheduled to be issued no later than
March 11, 2024, unless postponed.
All-Others Rate
Sections 703(d) and 705(c)(5)(A) of
the Act provide that in the preliminary
determination, Commerce shall
determine an estimated all-others rate
for companies not individually
examined. This rate shall be an amount
equal to the weighted average of the
estimated subsidy rates established for
those companies individually
examined, excluding any zero and de
minimis rates and any rates based
entirely under section 776 of the Act.
In this investigation, Commerce
preliminarily calculated individual
estimated countervailable subsidy rates
for Dongzheng and Fujian Nanwang that
are not zero, de minimis, or based
entirely on facts otherwise available.12
Therefore, Commerce calculated the allothers rate using a weighted average of
the individually estimated subsidy rates
calculated for the examined respondents
using each company’s public ranged
data for the value of its exports of
subject merchandise to the United
States.13
10 See
sections 776(a) and (b) of the Act.
Petitioner’s Letter, ‘‘Petitioner’s Request to
Align Countervailing Duty Investigation Final
Determination with Antidumping Duty
Investigation Final Determination,’’ dated October
5, 2023.
12 See Preliminary Decision Memorandum at
Appendix I.
13 See Memorandum, ‘‘Calculations of ‘All
Others’ Rate for the Preliminary Determination of
the Countervailing Duty Investigation of Certain
Paper Shopping Bags from the People’s Republic of
China,’’ dated concurrently with this notice, at 1.
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11 See
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Preliminary Determination
Commerce preliminarily determines
that the following estimated
countervailable subsidy rates exist:
Bagitan Packaging ................
Changzhou Anjucheng .........
Courage Packaging ..............
Dongzheng Paperbag
(DaLian) Factory ...............
Evertrust Packaging .............
Fujian Nanwang Environment Protection ScienTech Co., Ltd.14 ................
Geotegrity EcoPack ..............
GrandIntelligent ....................
Li & Fung ..............................
Qindao Chenyu Packaging
Co., Ltd .............................
Shanghai Macolink Supply
Chain Management Co.,
Ltd .....................................
Shanghai Shanxi Paper Co.,
Ltd .....................................
Xiamen C&D Pulp & Paper
Co., Ltd .............................
Xiamen Champion FMCG ....
Xiamen New Idea Packaging
Co., Ltd .............................
Xiamen Wonderful Bag Import and Export Co., Ltd ...
All Others ..............................
Verification
As provided in section 782(i)(1) of the
Act, Commerce intends to verify the
144.03 information relied upon in making its
144.03 final determination.
144.03
12.43
144.03
13.96
144.03
144.03
144.03
144.03
144.03
144.03
144.03
144.03
144.03
144.03
13.84
Suspension of Liquidation
In accordance with section
703(e)(2)(A) of the Act, because we find
that critical circumstances exist for
Dongzhen, Fujian Nanwang, the nonresponse companies, and all other
producers and/or exporters, Commerce
will direct U.S. Customs and Border
Protection (CBP) to suspend liquidation
of entries of subject merchandise as
described in the scope of the
investigation section entered, or
withdrawn from warehouse, for
consumption on or after the date 90
days prior to the date of publication of
this notice in the Federal Register.
Further, pursuant to 19 CFR 351.205(d),
Commerce will instruct CBP to require
a cash deposit equal to the rates
indicated above.
Disclosure
Commerce intends to disclose its
calculations and analysis performed to
interested parties in this preliminary
determination within five days of its
14 As discussed in the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum, Commerce has found the following
companies to be cross-owned with Fujian Nanwang:
Zhuhai Zhongyue Paper Cup Container Co., Ltd.;
Anhui Nanwang Environmental Protection
Technology Co., Ltd., Xianghe Nanwang
Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd.; and
Hubei Nanwang Environmental Protection
Technology Co., Ltd.
Frm 00018
Fmt 4703
public announcement, or if there is no
public announcement, within five days
of the date of the publication of this
notice, in accordance with 19 CFR
351.224(b).
Subsidy rate
(percent
ad valorem)
Company
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Public Comment
All interested parties will have the
opportunity to submit scope case and
rebuttal briefs on the preliminary
decision regarding the scope of the AD
and CVD investigations. The deadlines
to submit scope case and rebuttal briefs
will be provided in the preliminary
scope decision memorandum. For all
scope case and rebuttal briefs, parties
must file identical documents
simultaneously on the records of the
ongoing AD and CVD paper bags
investigations. No new factual
information or business proprietary
information may be included in either
scope case or rebuttal briefs.
Case briefs or other written comments
on non-scope issues may be submitted
to the Assistant Secretary for
Enforcement and Compliance.
Interested parties will be notified of the
timeline for the submission of case
briefs and written comments at a later
date. Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues
raised in case briefs, may be submitted
no later than seven days after the
deadline date for case briefs after the
deadline date for case briefs.15 Pursuant
to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2),
parties who submit case or rebuttal
briefs in this investigation are
encouraged to submit with each
argument: (1) a statement of the issue;
(2) a brief summary of the argument;
and (3) a table of authorities. Note that
Commerce has amended certain of its
requirements pertaining to the service of
documents in 19 CFR 351.303(f).16
Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c),
interested parties who wish to request a
hearing, limited to issues raised in the
case and rebuttal briefs, must submit a
written request to the Assistant
Secretary for Enforcement and
Compliance, U.S. Department of
Commerce, within 30 days after the date
of publication of this notice. Requests
should contain the party’s name,
address, and telephone number, the
number of participants, and a list of the
15 See 19 CFR 351.309; see also 19 CFR 351.303
(for general filing requirements).
16 See Administrative Protective Order, Service,
and Other Procedures in Antidumping and
Countervailing Duty Proceedings; Final Rule, 88 FR
67069 (September 29, 2023).
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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 213 / Monday, November 6, 2023 / Notices
issues to be discussed. Oral
presentations at the hearing will be
limited to issues raised in the briefs. If
a request for a hearing is made, parties
will be notified of the time and date for
the hearing.17
U.S. International Trade Commission
Notification
In accordance with section 703(f) of
the Act, Commerce will notify the U.S.
International Trade Commission (ITC) of
its preliminary determination. If the
final determination is affirmative, the
ITC will determine before the later of
120 days after the date of this
preliminary determination or 45 days
after the final determination whether
these imports are materially injuring, or
threaten material injury to, the U.S.
industry.
Notification to Interested Parties
This determination is issued and
published in accordance with sections
703(f) and 777(i)(1) of the Act, and 19
CFR 351.205(c).
Dated: October 30, 2023.
Lisa W. Wang,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and
Compliance.
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Appendix I
Scope of the Investigation
The products within the scope of this
investigation are paper shopping bags with
handles of any type, regardless of whether
there is any printing, regardless of how the
top edges are finished (e.g., folded, serrated,
or otherwise finished), regardless of color,
and regardless of whether the top edges
contain adhesive or other material for sealing
closed. Subject paper shopping bags have a
width of at least 4.5 inches and depth of at
least 2.5 inches.
Paper shopping bags typically are made of
kraft paper but can be made from any type
of cellulose fiber, paperboard, or pressboard
with a basis weight less than 300 grams per
square meter (GSM).
A non-exhaustive illustrative list of the
types of handles on shopping bags covered
by the scope include handles made from any
materials such as twisted paper, flat paper,
yarn, ribbon, rope, string, or plastic, as well
as die-cut handles (whether the punchout is
fully removed or partially attached as a flap).
Excluded from the scope are:
• Paper sacks or bags that are of a 1⁄6 or 1⁄7
barrel size (i.e., 11.5–12.5 inches in width,
6.5–7.5 inches in depth, and 13.5–17.5
inches in height) with flat paper handles or
die-cut handles;
• Paper sacks or bags with die-cut handles,
a grams per square meter weight of less than
62 GSM, and a height of less than 11.5
inches; and
• Shopping bags (i) with non-paper
handles made wholly of woven ribbon or
other similar woven fabric and (ii) that are
17 See
19 CFR 351.310(d).
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finished with folded tops or for which tied
knots or t-bar aglets (made of wood, metal,
or plastic) are used to secure the handles to
the bags.
The above-referenced dimensions are
provided for paper bags in the opened
position. The height of the bag is the distance
from the bottom fold edge to the top edge
(i.e., excluding the height of handles that
extend above the top edge). The depth of the
bag is the distance from the front of the bag
edge to the back of the bag edge (typically
measured at the bottom of the bag). The
width of the bag is measured from the left to
the right edges of the front and back panels
(upon which the handles typically are
located).
This merchandise is currently classifiable
under Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the
United States (HTSUS) subheadings
4819.30.0040 and 4819.40.0040. The HTSUS
subheadings are provided for convenience
and customs purposes only; the written
description of the scope is dispositive.
and Compliance, International Trade
Administration, U.S. Department of
Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone:
(202) 482–6241 or (202) 482–4868,
respectively.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Commerce published the preliminary
results of this administrative review on
May 4, 2023.1 On August 4, 2023,
Commerce extended the deadline for the
final results of this review to no later
than October 31, 2023.2 For a
description of the events that occurred
since the Preliminary Results, see the
Issues and Decision Memorandum.3
We conducted this review in
accordance with section 751 of the
Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act).
Appendix II
Scope of the Order 4
List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary
Decision Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope of the Investigation
IV. Scope Comments
V. Injury Test
VI. Analysis of China’s Financial System
VII. Diversification of China’s Economy
VIII. Use of Facts Otherwise Available and
Adverse Inferences
IX. Subsidies Valuation
X. Benchmarks and Interest Rates
XI. Analysis of Programs
XII. Critical Circumstances
XIII. Recommendation
The products covered by this Order
are phosphate fertilizers. For a complete
description of the scope of this Order,
see the Issues and Decision
Memorandum.
[FR Doc. 2023–24473 Filed 11–3–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[C–821–825]
Phosphate Fertilizers From the
Russian Federation: Final Results of
Countervailing Duty Administrative
Review; 2020–2021
Enforcement and Compliance,
International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of
Commerce (Commerce) determines that
Joint Stock Company Apatit (JSC
Apatit), a producer/exporter of
phosphate fertilizers from the Russian
Federation (Russia), received
countervailable subsidies during the
period of review (POR), November 30,
2020, through December 31, 2021.
DATES: Applicable November 6, 2023.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Shane Subler or William Horn, AD/CVD
Operations, Office VIII, Enforcement
AGENCY:
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Analysis of Comments Received
All issues raised in interested parties’
case briefs are addressed in the Issues
and Decision Memorandum
accompanying this notice. A list of the
issues raised by parties, and to which
Commerce responded in the Issues and
Decision Memorandum, is provided in
the appendix to this notice. The Issues
and 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 Issues and Decision
Memorandum can be accessed directly
at https://access.trade.gov/public/
FRNoticesListLayout.aspx.
1 See Phosphate Fertilizers from the Russian
Federation: Preliminary Results and Partial
Rescission of the Countervailing Duty
Administrative Review; 2020–2021, 88 FR 28505,
28506 (May 4, 2023) (Preliminary Results) and
accompanying Preliminary Decision Memorandum
(PDM).
2 See Memorandum, ‘‘Extension of Deadline for
Final Results of Countervailing Duty Administrative
Review,’’ dated August 4, 2023.
3 See Memorandum, ‘‘Issues and Decision
Memorandum for the Final Results of the
Countervailing Duty Administrative Review of
Phosphate Fertilizers from the Russian Federation;
2020–2021,’’ dated concurrently with, and hereby
adopted by, this notice (Issues and Decision
Memorandum).
4 See Phosphate Fertilizers from the Kingdom of
Morocco and the Russian Federation:
Countervailing Duty Orders, 86 FR 18037 (April 7,
2021) (Order).
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 213 (Monday, November 6, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76180-76182]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-24473]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[C-570-153]
Certain Paper Shopping Bags From the People's Republic of China:
Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Countervailable Subsidies,
Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances, and
Alignment of Final Determination With Final Antidumping Duty
Determination
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily
determines that countervailable subsidies are being provided to
producers and exporters of certain paper shopping bags (paper bags)
from the People's Republic of China (China). The period of
investigation (POI) is January 1, 2022, through December 31, 2022.
Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary
determination.
DATES: Applicable November 6, 2023.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Seth Brown, AD/CVD Operations, Office
IX, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington,
DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-0029.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
This preliminary determination is made in accordance with section
703(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Commerce
published the notice of initiation of this countervailing duty (CVD)
investigation on June 26, 2023.\1\ On August 7, 2023, Commerce
postponed the preliminary determination until October 30, 2023.\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ See Certain Paper Shopping Bags from India and the People's
Republic of China: Initiation of Countervailing Duty Investigations,
88 FR 41380 (June 26, 2023) (Initiation Notice).
\2\ See Certain Paper Shopping Bags from the People's Republic
of China and India: Postponement of Preliminary Determinations in
the Countervailing Duty Investigations, 88 FR 52122 (August 7,
2023).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
For a complete description of the events that followed the
initiation of this investigation, see the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum.\3\ A list of topics discussed in the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum is included as Appendix II 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 https://access.trade.gov/public/FRNoticesListLayout.aspx.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for Preliminary
Affirmative Determination of the Countervailing Duty Investigation
of Certain Paper Shopping Bags from the People's Republic of
China,'' dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice
(Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Scope of the Investigation
The products covered by this investigation are paper bags from
China. For a complete description of the scope of this investigation,
see Appendix I.
Scope Comments
In accordance with the preamble to Commerce's regulations,\4\ the
Initiation Notice set aside a period of time for parties to raise
issues regarding product coverage (scope).\5\ We received comments from
interested parties commented on the scope of the concurrent antidumping
duty (AD) and CVD investigations as it appeared in the Initiation
Notice, which are listed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\6\ We
are currently evaluating the scope comments filed by interested parties
and intend to issue our preliminary decision regarding the scope of the
AD and CVD investigations prior to or concurrently with the AD
preliminary determinations. We will incorporate the scope decisions
from the AD investigations into the scope of the final CVD
determination for this investigation, after considering any relevant
comments submitted in scope case and rebuttal briefs.\7\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule,
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997).
\5\ See Initiation Notice, 88 FR at 41380.
\6\ See Preliminary Decision Memorandum at 2-3.
\7\ The deadline for interested parties to submit scope case and
rebuttal briefs will be established in the preliminary scope
decision memorandum.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances
In accordance with section 703(e)(1) of the Act, we preliminarily
find that critical circumstances exist with respect to imports of
subject merchandise for Dongzheng Paper Bag (Dalian) Factory
(Dongzheng), Fujian Nanwang Environment Protection Scien-tech Co., Ltd.
(Fujian Nanwan) the non-responsive companies,\8\ and all other
producers and/or exporters. For a full discussion of our preliminary
critical circumstances determination, see the ``Critical
Circumstances'' section of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\8\ The non-responsive companies are: (1) Bagitan Packaging; (2)
Changzhou Anjucheng; (3) Courage Packaging; (4) Evertrust Packaging;
(5) Geotegrity EcoPack; (6) GrandIntelligent; (7) Li & Fung; (8)
Qindao Chenyu Packaging Co., Ltd.; (9) Shanghai Macolink Supply
Chain Management Co., Ltd.; (10) Shanghai Sanxi Paper Co., Ltd.;
(11) Xiamen C&D Pulp & Paper Co., Ltd.; (12) Xiamen Champion FMCG;
(13) Xiamen New Idea Packaging Co., Ltd.; and (14) Xiamen Wonderful
Bag Import and Export Co., Ltd.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Methodology
Commerce is conducting this investigation in accordance with
section 701 of the Act. For each of the subsidy programs found
countervailable, Commerce preliminarily determines that there is a
subsidy, i.e., a financial contribution by an ``authority'' that gives
rise to a benefit to the recipient, and that the subsidy is
specific.\9\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\9\ See sections 771(5)(B) and (D) of the Act regarding
financial contribution; section 771(5)(E) of the Act regarding
benefit; and section 771(5A) of the Act regarding specificity.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commerce notes that, in making these findings, it relied, in part,
on facts
[[Page 76181]]
available, and, because it finds that one or more respondents did not
act to the best of their ability to respond to Commerce's requests for
information, it drew an adverse inference where appropriate in
selecting from among the facts otherwise available.\10\ For further
information, see the ``Use of Facts Otherwise Available and Adverse
Inferences'' section of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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\10\ See sections 776(a) and (b) of the Act.
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Alignment
In accordance with section 705(a)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR
351.210(b)(4), Commerce is aligning the final CVD determination in this
investigation with the final determination in the companion AD
investigation of paper bags from China based on a request made by the
Coalition for Fair Trade in Shopping Bags (the petitioner).\11\
Consequently, the final CVD determination will be issued on the same
date as the final AD determination, which is currently scheduled to be
issued no later than March 11, 2024, unless postponed.
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\11\ See Petitioner's Letter, ``Petitioner's Request to Align
Countervailing Duty Investigation Final Determination with
Antidumping Duty Investigation Final Determination,'' dated October
5, 2023.
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All-Others Rate
Sections 703(d) and 705(c)(5)(A) of the Act provide that in the
preliminary determination, Commerce shall determine an estimated all-
others rate for companies not individually examined. This rate shall be
an amount equal to the weighted average of the estimated subsidy rates
established for those companies individually examined, excluding any
zero and de minimis rates and any rates based entirely under section
776 of the Act.
In this investigation, Commerce preliminarily calculated individual
estimated countervailable subsidy rates for Dongzheng and Fujian
Nanwang that are not zero, de minimis, or based entirely on facts
otherwise available.\12\ Therefore, Commerce calculated the all-others
rate using a weighted average of the individually estimated subsidy
rates calculated for the examined respondents using each company's
public ranged data for the value of its exports of subject merchandise
to the United States.\13\
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\12\ See Preliminary Decision Memorandum at Appendix I.
\13\ See Memorandum, ``Calculations of `All Others' Rate for the
Preliminary Determination of the Countervailing Duty Investigation
of Certain Paper Shopping Bags from the People's Republic of
China,'' dated concurrently with this notice, at 1.
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Preliminary Determination
Commerce preliminarily determines that the following estimated
countervailable subsidy rates exist:
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\14\ As discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum,
Commerce has found the following companies to be cross-owned with
Fujian Nanwang: Zhuhai Zhongyue Paper Cup Container Co., Ltd.; Anhui
Nanwang Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd., Xianghe
Nanwang Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd.; and Hubei
Nanwang Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd.
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Subsidy rate
Company (percent ad
valorem)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bagitan Packaging....................................... 144.03
Changzhou Anjucheng..................................... 144.03
Courage Packaging....................................... 144.03
Dongzheng Paperbag (DaLian) Factory..................... 12.43
Evertrust Packaging..................................... 144.03
Fujian Nanwang Environment Protection Scien-Tech Co., 13.96
Ltd.\14\...............................................
Geotegrity EcoPack...................................... 144.03
GrandIntelligent........................................ 144.03
Li & Fung............................................... 144.03
Qindao Chenyu Packaging Co., Ltd........................ 144.03
Shanghai Macolink Supply Chain Management Co., Ltd...... 144.03
Shanghai Shanxi Paper Co., Ltd.......................... 144.03
Xiamen C&D Pulp & Paper Co., Ltd........................ 144.03
Xiamen Champion FMCG.................................... 144.03
Xiamen New Idea Packaging Co., Ltd...................... 144.03
Xiamen Wonderful Bag Import and Export Co., Ltd......... 144.03
All Others.............................................. 13.84
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Suspension of Liquidation
In accordance with section 703(e)(2)(A) of the Act, because we find
that critical circumstances exist for Dongzhen, Fujian Nanwang, the
non-response companies, and all other producers and/or exporters,
Commerce will direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to
suspend liquidation of entries of subject merchandise as described in
the scope of the investigation section entered, or withdrawn from
warehouse, for consumption on or after the date 90 days prior to the
date of publication of this notice in the Federal Register. Further,
pursuant to 19 CFR 351.205(d), Commerce will instruct CBP to require a
cash deposit equal to the rates indicated above.
Disclosure
Commerce intends to disclose its calculations and analysis
performed to interested parties in this preliminary determination
within five days of its public announcement, or if there is no public
announcement, within five days of the date of the publication of this
notice, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).
Verification
As provided in section 782(i)(1) of the Act, Commerce intends to
verify the information relied upon in making its final determination.
Public Comment
All interested parties will have the opportunity to submit scope
case and rebuttal briefs on the preliminary decision regarding the
scope of the AD and CVD investigations. The deadlines to submit scope
case and rebuttal briefs will be provided in the preliminary scope
decision memorandum. For all scope case and rebuttal briefs, parties
must file identical documents simultaneously on the records of the
ongoing AD and CVD paper bags investigations. No new factual
information or business proprietary information may be included in
either scope case or rebuttal briefs.
Case briefs or other written comments on non-scope issues may be
submitted to the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Interested parties will be notified of the timeline for the submission
of case briefs and written comments at a later date. Rebuttal briefs,
limited to issues raised in case briefs, may be submitted no later than
seven days after the deadline date for case briefs after the deadline
date for case briefs.\15\ Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2),
parties who submit case or rebuttal briefs in this investigation are
encouraged to submit with each argument: (1) a statement of the issue;
(2) a brief summary of the argument; and (3) a table of authorities.
Note that Commerce has amended certain of its requirements pertaining
to the service of documents in 19 CFR 351.303(f).\16\
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\15\ See 19 CFR 351.309; see also 19 CFR 351.303 (for general
filing requirements).
\16\ See Administrative Protective Order, Service, and Other
Procedures in Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings; Final
Rule, 88 FR 67069 (September 29, 2023).
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Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), interested parties who wish to
request a hearing, limited to issues raised in the case and rebuttal
briefs, must submit a written request to the Assistant Secretary for
Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. Department of Commerce, within 30 days
after the date of publication of this notice. Requests should contain
the party's name, address, and telephone number, the number of
participants, and a list of the
[[Page 76182]]
issues to be discussed. Oral presentations at the hearing will be
limited to issues raised in the briefs. If a request for a hearing is
made, parties will be notified of the time and date for the
hearing.\17\
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\17\ See 19 CFR 351.310(d).
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U.S. International Trade Commission Notification
In accordance with section 703(f) of the Act, Commerce will notify
the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) of its preliminary
determination. If the final determination is affirmative, the ITC will
determine before the later of 120 days after the date of this
preliminary determination or 45 days after the final determination
whether these imports are materially injuring, or threaten material
injury to, the U.S. industry.
Notification to Interested Parties
This determination is issued and published in accordance with
sections 703(f) and 777(i)(1) of the Act, and 19 CFR 351.205(c).
Dated: October 30, 2023.
Lisa W. Wang,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix I
Scope of the Investigation
The products within the scope of this investigation are paper
shopping bags with handles of any type, regardless of whether there
is any printing, regardless of how the top edges are finished (e.g.,
folded, serrated, or otherwise finished), regardless of color, and
regardless of whether the top edges contain adhesive or other
material for sealing closed. Subject paper shopping bags have a
width of at least 4.5 inches and depth of at least 2.5 inches.
Paper shopping bags typically are made of kraft paper but can be
made from any type of cellulose fiber, paperboard, or pressboard
with a basis weight less than 300 grams per square meter (GSM).
A non-exhaustive illustrative list of the types of handles on
shopping bags covered by the scope include handles made from any
materials such as twisted paper, flat paper, yarn, ribbon, rope,
string, or plastic, as well as die-cut handles (whether the punchout
is fully removed or partially attached as a flap).
Excluded from the scope are:
Paper sacks or bags that are of a \1/6\ or \1/7\ barrel
size (i.e., 11.5-12.5 inches in width, 6.5-7.5 inches in depth, and
13.5-17.5 inches in height) with flat paper handles or die-cut
handles;
Paper sacks or bags with die-cut handles, a grams per
square meter weight of less than 62 GSM, and a height of less than
11.5 inches; and
Shopping bags (i) with non-paper handles made wholly of
woven ribbon or other similar woven fabric and (ii) that are
finished with folded tops or for which tied knots or t-bar aglets
(made of wood, metal, or plastic) are used to secure the handles to
the bags.
The above-referenced dimensions are provided for paper bags in
the opened position. The height of the bag is the distance from the
bottom fold edge to the top edge (i.e., excluding the height of
handles that extend above the top edge). The depth of the bag is the
distance from the front of the bag edge to the back of the bag edge
(typically measured at the bottom of the bag). The width of the bag
is measured from the left to the right edges of the front and back
panels (upon which the handles typically are located).
This merchandise is currently classifiable under Harmonized
Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) subheadings
4819.30.0040 and 4819.40.0040. The HTSUS subheadings are provided
for convenience and customs purposes only; the written description
of the scope is dispositive.
Appendix II
List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope of the Investigation
IV. Scope Comments
V. Injury Test
VI. Analysis of China's Financial System
VII. Diversification of China's Economy
VIII. Use of Facts Otherwise Available and Adverse Inferences
IX. Subsidies Valuation
X. Benchmarks and Interest Rates
XI. Analysis of Programs
XII. Critical Circumstances
XIII. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2023-24473 Filed 11-3-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P