The Commerce Department didn't improperly "relitigate" a negative injury determination on freight rail couplers from China in its antidumping duty and countervailing duty investigations on the same product, the Court of International Trade held on Dec. 23. Judge Gary Katzmann said the second set of proceedings involving Chinese freight rail couplers differed from the first in three key ways: it covered different physical merchandise, it involved different countries of origin, and it involved a different period of review.
CBP stuck with its finding that exporter Kingtom Aluminio uses forced labor in manufacturing aluminum extrusions following a decision from the Court of International Trade that the agency failed to adequately explain its initial forced labor finding. CBP found that "Kingtom submitted its employees to situations that align with multiple [International Labour Organization] (ILO) indicators of forced labor" (Kingtom Aluminio v. United States, CIT # 24-00264).
The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court last month found that Mexico discriminated against non-Mexican steel conduit in government procurement through, among other things, state-owned bank loans, energy subsidies, "unfair transshipment schemes" and "permitting misclassification of steel conduit" (Wheatland Tube v. Foreign Country of Mexico, Pa. Cmwlth. # 496).
The Commerce Department reasonably found that wheels made in a third country with a mix of Chinese and third-country parts are covered by the scope of the antidumping duty and countervailing duty orders on steel trailer wheels from China, the U.S. told the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Dec. 15 (Asia Wheel Co. v. United States, Fed. Cir. #s 25-1689, 25-1694).
In remand results published Dec. 15, the Commerce Department maintained its refusal to grant exporter Dingsheng Aluminum Industries Group a double remedies adjustment in its countervailing duty administrative review on aluminum foil from China (Jiangsu Dingsheng New Materials Joint-Stock Co. v. U.S., CIT # 23-00264).
The Commerce Department failed to adequately support its finding that circular welded steel pipe from Vietnam made with hot-rolled steel from South Korea, India or China circumvented the antidumping duty and countervailing duty orders on steel pipe from the three countries, the Court of International Trade held on Dec. 16.
The Commerce Department failed to adequately support its decision in a scope referral to exclude certain carbon steel butt-weld pipe fittings made from Chinese fittings that underwent production in Vietnam from the scope of the antidumping duty order on carbon steel butt-weld pipe fittings from China, the Court of International Trade held on Dec. 16.
The Commerce Department reasonably found that a certain Moroccan tax subsidy isn't de facto specific, since it's widely available throughout the economy, the Court of International Trade held on Dec. 16. Judge Timothy Stanceu sustained Commerce's reversal of its specificity determination made on remand in a case on the 2020-21 review of the countervailing duty order on Moroccan phosphate fertilizer.
Responding to a plywood importer’s motion for rehearing, the U.S. Dec. 12 denied that it had suppressed evidence in “flagrant violation” of a remand order, saying the importer, InterGlobal Forest, had no basis for seeking a rehearing of its case (American Pacific Plywood v. United States, CIT Consol. # 20-03914).
The Court of International Trade on Dec. 16 for a second time remanded the Commerce Department's scope ruling excluding certain carbon steel butt-weld pipe fittings made from Chinese fittings that underwent production in Vietnam from the scope of the antidumping duty order on carbon steel butt-weld pipe fittings from China. Judge Jennifer Choe-Groves said two of the (k)(1) sources used by Commerce, the International Trade Commission report and AD petition, don't support the agency's conclusion. The judge instructed Commerce to review the (k)(2) sources, including the "applicable industry standards" and "declarations from domestic industry executives." Choe-Groves also remanded the agency's substantial transformation analysis to determine the goods at issue's country of origin.