Continuation of Antidumping Duty Order on Saccharin from the People's Republic of China

AGENCY:

Import Administration, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

June 8, 2009.

SUMMARY:

As a result of the determinations by the Department of Commerce (“Department”) and the International Trade Commission (“ITC”) that revocation of the antidumping duty order on saccharin from the People's Republic of China (“PRC”) would likely lead to a continuation or recurrence of dumping and material injury to an industry in the United States, the Department is publishing a notice of continuation of the antidumping duty order.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Andrea Staebler Berton, AD/CVD Operations, Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street & Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-4037.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

On June 5, 2008, the Department published the notice of initiation of the sunset review of the antidumping duty order on saccharin from the PRC pursuant to section 751(c) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (“the Act”). See Initiation of Five-year (“Sunset”) Review, 73 FR 31974 (June 5, 2008).

As a result of its review, the Department determined that revocation of the antidumping duty order on saccharin from the PRC would likely lead to a continuation or recurrence of dumping and, therefore, notified the ITC of the magnitude of the margins likely to prevail should the order be revoked. See Saccharin from the People's Republic of China: Final Results of the Expedited Sunset Review of the Antidumping Duty Order, 73 FR 59604 (October 9, 2008).

On June 1, 2009, the ITC determined, pursuant to section 751(c) of the Act, that revocation of the antidumping duty order on saccharin from the PRC would likely lead to a continuation or recurrence of material injury to an industry in the United States within a reasonably foreseeable future. See Saccharin from China, 74 FR 26257 (June 1, 2009), and USITC Publication 4077 (May 2009).

Scope of the Order

The product covered by this antidumping duty order is saccharin. Saccharin is defined as a non-nutritive sweetener used in beverages and foods, personal care products such as toothpaste, table top sweeteners, and animal feeds. It is also used in metalworking fluids. There are four primary chemical compositions of saccharin: (1) Sodium saccharin (American Chemical Society Chemical Abstract Service (“CAS”) Registry 128-44-9); (2) calcium saccharin (CAS Registry 6485-34-3); (3) acid (or insoluble) saccharin (CAS Registry 81-07-2); and (4) research grade saccharin. Most of the U.S.-produced and imported grades of saccharin from the PRC are sodium and calcium saccharin, which are available in granular, powder, spray-dried powder, and liquid forms. The merchandise subject to this order is currently classifiable under subheading 2925.11.00 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (“HTSUS”) and includes all types of saccharin imported under this HTSUS subheading, including research and specialized grades. Although the HTSUS subheading is provided for convenience and customs purposes, the Department's written description of the scope of this order remains dispositive.

Continuation of the Order

As a result of these determinations by the Department and the ITC that revocation of the antidumping duty order would likely lead to a continuation or recurrence of dumping and material injury to an industry in the United States, pursuant to section 751(d)(2) of the Act, the Department hereby orders the continuation of the antidumping order on saccharin from the PRC. United States Customs and Border Protection will continue to collect antidumping duty cash deposits at the rates in effect at the time of entry for all imports of subject merchandise. The effective date of the continuation of the order will be the date of publication in the Federal Register of this notice of continuation. Pursuant to section 751(c)(2) of the Act, the Department intends to initiate the next five-year review of the order not later than 30 days prior to the fifth anniversary of the effective date of continuation.

This five-year (sunset) review and this notice are in accordance with section 751(c) of the Act and published pursuant to section 777(i)(1) of the Act.