Commerce Announces Preliminary Results in Eighth Administrative Reviews of the Antidumping Duty Orders on Shrimp

Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced preliminary results in the administrative proceedings determining antidumping duties assessed on shrimp imports that entered the United States between February 1, 2012 and January 31, 2013.  The results of the eighth administrative review, when final, will also establish the cash deposits required to be made by importers for future shipments.

In the previous administrative review, Commerce had found that all Thai and Vietnamese shrimp exporters participating in the proceeding, as well as two of the three individually reviewed Indian shrimp exporters, were selling shrimp into the U.S. market at fair value.  In result, Commerce declined to assess antidumping duties and did not require cash deposits for future entries.  However, in the preliminary results of the current administrative review, Commerce has preliminarily found that all Indian, Thai, and Vietnamese shrimp exporters participating in the proceeding sold shrimp into the U.S. market at less than fair value.

The dumping margins calculated by the agency vary, from 1.10% for all Thai shrimp exporters participating in the review to 9.75% for Stapimex, a Vietnamese shrimp exporter.  The Indian exporter Falcon Marine received a preliminary margin of 3.01% which, if confirmed in Commerce’s final determination, would be the highest antidumping duty rate found for the company since the first administrative review.  Further, if confirmed in a final determination, Vietnamese shrimp exporters are facing the highest antidumping duty rates ever calculated for that industry – 4.98% for the Minh Phu Group, 9.75% for Stapimex, and 6.37% for all other participating Vietnamese exporters.

Commerce also announced preliminary results in its review of Chinese shrimp imports, finding that the two Chinese exporters that were selected to be individually reviewed refused to participate in the proceeding.  One of the companies selected, Zhanjiang Newpro Foods Co., Ltd., initially participated in the review but withdrew after the domestic industry – through the Ad Hoc Shrimp Trade Action Committee – raised concerns regarding the veracity and accuracy of its representations to the agency.  Following Zhanjiang Newpro’s withdrawal, the Ad Hoc Shrimp Trade Action Committee submitted additional comments regarding the ramifications of materials disclosed on the proprietary, non-public record of the proceeding.  The decision memorandum accompanying the agency’s preliminary results addressed the domestic industry’s concerns by explaining that Commerce intended to take additional action:

Based on information submitted by Newpro, which has been determined to be part of the PRC-wide entity, the Department preliminarily determines that certain shipments made by Newpro that were not included in Newpro’s U.S. sales database, should be considered part of Newpro’s universe of U.S. sales.  Record evidence suggests that Newpro had, or should have had, knowledge that these sales were ultimately destined for the United States.  Newpro’s refusal to provide documentation requested by the Department, refusal to respond to any additional requests for information and refusal to participate in a verification of its questionnaire responses prevented the Department from fully investigating Newpro’s activities during the POR and raises serious concerns regarding Newpro’s conduct and credibility over the course of this review.

Accordingly, if this recommendation is adopted in our final results, the Department intends to adjust the assessment rates for certain entries of subject merchandise from Newpro to account for the total amount of duties that would have been collected on Newpro’s full universe of U.S. sales. Further, because this issue involves potentially false representations to CBP, the Department intends to transmit all information collected over the course of this review to CBP for further enforcement, if necessary. . . .

Before reaching final determinations, Commerce will consider legal briefs submitted regarding the preliminary results announced yesterday.  These final results, in turn, are subject to appeal to the U.S. Court of International Trade.

The preliminary margins announced by Commerce in the four proceedings – China, India, Thailand, and Vietnam – are summarized in the table below:

Read the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Decision Memorandum for Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review: Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from the People’s Republic of China:

https://shrimpalliance.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/PRC-Shrimp-AR8-Prelim-Decision-Memo-signed.pdf