# Certain Hot-Rolled Steel Flat Products From Australia: Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review and Intent To Rescind Review, in Part; 2018-2019
**AGENCY:**
Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.
**SUMMARY:**
The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily finds that the producer/exporter subject to this review made sales of subject merchandise at less than normal value during the period of review (POR), October 1, 2018, through September 30, 2019. We invite interested parties to comment on these preliminary results.
**DATES:**
Applicable February 23, 2021.
**FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:**
Allison Hollander, AD/CVD Operations, Office I, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-2805.
**SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:**
**Background**
On January 17, 2020, Commerce initiated this administrative review of the antidumping duty order on certain hot-rolled steel flat products (hot-rolled steel) from Australia in accordance with section 751(a) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). [^1] This review covers one producer/exporter of subject merchandise, the collapsed entity, BlueScope Steel (AIS) Pty Ltd., BlueScope Steel Ltd., and BlueScope Steel Distribution Pty Ltd. (collectively, BlueScope). On April 24, 2020, Commerce exercised its discretion to toll all deadlines for administrative reviews by 50 days, resulting in a revised deadline for these preliminary results. [^2] On July 21, 2020, Commerce again tolled all deadlines in administrative reviews by an additional 60 days. [^3] Additionally, Commerce exercised its discretion to extend the deadline for the preliminary results until February 17, 2021. [^4]
[^1]*See Initiation of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Administrative Reviews,* 85 FR 3014 (January 17, 2020) ( *Initiation Notice* ).
[^2]*See* Memorandum, “Tolling of Deadlines for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Administrative Reviews in Response to Operational Adjustments Due to COVID-19,” dated April 24, 2020.
[^3]*See* Memorandum, “Tolling of Deadlines for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Administrative Reviews,” dated July 21, 2020.
[^4]*See* Memorandum, “Certain Hot-Rolled Steel Flat Products from Australia: Extension of Deadline for Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review; 2018-2019,” dated September 21, 2020.
**Scope of the Order**
The products covered by this *Order*[^5] are certain hot-rolled, flat-rolled steel products. For a full description of the scope, *see* the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. [^6]
[^5]*See Certain Hot-Rolled Steel Flat Products from Australia, Brazil, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the Netherlands, the Republic of Turkey, and the United Kingdom: Amended Final Affirmative Antidumping Determinations for Australia, the Republic of Korea, and the Republic of Turkey and Antidumping Duty Orders,* 81 FR 67962 (October 3, 2016) ( *Order* ).
[^6]*See* Memorandum, “Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review: Hot Rolled Steel Flat Products from Australia: 2018-2019,” dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
**Methodology**
Commerce is conducting this review in accordance with section 751(a) of the Act. Constructed export price is calculated in accordance with section 772 of the Act. Normal value is calculated in accordance with section 773 of the Act.
For a full description of the methodology underlying these preliminary results, *see* the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. The Preliminary Decision Memorandum is a public document and is made available to the public 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 is available at *http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/.* A list of the topics included in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is included as an appendix to this notice.
**Intent To Rescind Review in Part**
In the *Initiation Notice,* Commerce inadvertently included as subject to the review a U.S. company, *i.e.,* AJU Steel USA Inc., for which a review should not have been initiated. As such, Commerce intends to rescind the review with respect to AJU Steel USA Inc. After the completion of the final results of review, Commerce intends to instruct CBP to assess antidumping duties on any suspended entries of hot-rolled steel from AJU Steel USA Inc. at the rate equal to the cash deposit rate of estimated antidumping duties required at the time of entry, or withdrawal from warehouse for consumption.
**Preliminary Results of Review**
We preliminarily determine that the following weighted-average dumping margin exists for the period October 1, 2018, through September 30, 2019:
| Exporter/producer | Weighted- |
| --- | --- |
| BlueScope Steel (AIS) Pty Ltd, BlueScope Steel Ltd., and BlueScope Steel Distribution Pty Ltd | 7.96 |
**Disclosure and Public Comment**
We intend to disclose the calculations performed to parties within five days after public announcement of the preliminary results. [^7] Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c), interested parties may submit case briefs no later than 30 days after the date of publication of this notice. Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in the case briefs, may be filed not later than seven days after the date for filing case briefs. [^8] Commerce modified certain of its requirements for serving documents containing business proprietary information until further notice. [^9] Parties who submit case briefs or rebuttal briefs in this proceeding 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. [^10] Case and rebuttal briefs should be filed using ACCESS [^11] and must be served on interested parties. [^12] Executive summaries should be limited to five pages total, including footnotes.
[^7]*See* 19 CFR 351.224(b).
[^8]*See* 19 CFR 351.309(d); *see also Temporary Rule Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements Due to COVID-19,* 85 FR 17006, 17007 (March 26, 2020) (“To provide adequate time for release of case briefs via ACCESS, E&C intends to schedule the due date for all rebuttal briefs to be 7 days after case briefs are filed (while these modifications remain in effect).”).
[^9]*See Temporary Rule Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements Due to COVID-19; Extension of Effective Period,* 85 FR 41363 (July 10, 2020).
[^10]*See* 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2).
[^11]*See generally* 19 CFR 351.303.
[^12]*See* 19 CFR 351.303(f).
Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), interested parties who wish to request a hearing must submit a written request to the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance, filed electronically via ACCESS. Requests should contain: (1) The party's name, address and telephone number; (2) the number of participants; and (3) a list of issues to be discussed. Issues raised in the hearing will be limited to those raised in the respective case briefs. An electronically filed hearing request must be received successfully in its entirety by Commerce's electronic records system, ACCESS, by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time within 30 days after the date of publication of this notice.
Commerce intends to issue the final results of this administrative review, including the results of its analysis of the issues raised in any written briefs, not later than 120 days after the date of publication of this notice, pursuant to section 751(a)(3)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.213(h)(1).
**Assessment Rates**
Upon completion of the final results, Commerce shall determine, and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) shall assess, antidumping duties on all appropriate entries. If BlueScope's weighted-average dumping margin is above *de minimis* in the final results of this review, we will calculate an importer-specific assessment rate on the basis of the ratio of the total amount of dumping calculated for each importer's examined sales and the total entered value of those same sales in accordance with 19 CFR 351.212(b)(1). [^13] If BlueScope's weighted-average dumping margin or an importer-specific assessment rate is zero or *de minimis,* in the final results of review, we will instruct CBP to liquidate the appropriate entries without regard to antidumping duties. [^14] The final results of this administrative review shall be the basis for the assessment of antidumping duties on entries of merchandise covered by the final results of this review and for future deposits of estimated duties, where applicable. [^15]
[^13]*See Antidumping Proceedings: Calculation of the Weighted-Average Dumping Margin and Assessment Rate in Certain Antidumping Proceedings: Final Modification,* 77 FR 8101, 8103 (February 14, 2012).
[^14]*Id.* at 8102-03; *see also* 19 CFR 351.106(c)(2).
[^15]*See* section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act.
For entries of subject merchandise during the POR produced by BlueScope for which it did not know that the merchandise was destined to the United States, we will instruct CBP to liquidate unreviewed entries at the all-others rate if there is no rate for the intermediate company(ies) involved in the transaction. [^16]
[^16] For a full discussion of this practice, see Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings: Assessment of Antidumping Duties, 68 FR 23954 (May 6, 2003).
Commerce intends to issue assessment instructions to CBP no earlier than 35 days after the date of publication of the final results of this review in the *Federal Register* . If a timely summons is filed at the U.S. Court of International Trade, the assessment instructions will direct CBP not to liquidate relevant entries until the time for parties to file a request for a statutory injunction has expired ( *i.e.,* within 90 days of publication).
**Cash Deposit Requirements**
The following cash deposit requirements will be effective upon publication in the *Federal Register* of the notice of final results of administrative review for all shipments of hot-rolled steel from Australia entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication as provided by section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act: (1) The cash deposit rate for BlueScope will be equal to the weighted-average dumping margin established in the final results of this administrative review; (2) for merchandise exported by a company not covered in this review but covered in a prior segment of the proceeding, the cash deposit rate will continue to be the company-specific rate published in the completed segment for the most recent period; (3) if the exporter is not a firm covered in this review or the original investigation but the producer is, then the cash deposit rate will be the rate established in the completed segment for the most recent period for the producer of the merchandise; (4) the cash deposit rate for all other producers or exporters will continue to be 29.58 percent, the all-others rate established in the less-than-fair-value investigation. These cash deposit requirements, when imposed, shall remain in effect until further notice.
**Notification to Importers**
This notice also serves as a preliminary reminder to importers of their responsibility under 19 CFR 351.402(f)(2) to file a certificate regarding the reimbursement of antidumping duties prior to liquidation of the relevant entries during this POR. Failure to comply with this requirement could result in Commerce's presumption that reimbursement of antidumping duties occurred and the subsequent assessment of doubled antidumping duties.
**Notification to Interested Parties**
We are issuing and publishing these results in accordance with sections 751(a)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act, and 19 CFR 351.221.
Dated: February 16, 2021.
Christian Marsh,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
**Appendix—List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum**
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope of the Order
IV. Discussion of the Methodology
V. Currency Conversion
VI. Recommendation