Petitions Filed for New AD Duties on Acetone From 6 Countries
A coalition of domestic manufacturers filed petitions Nov. 18 with the Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission, asking for new antidumping duties on acetone from Belgium, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa and Spain. Commerce will now decide whether to begin AD duty investigations on acetone from these six countries. The subject merchandise is used as a solvent in the manufacture of coatings, plastics, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics (including nail polish removers), as well as the production of other solvents and intermediates.
The petition was filed by the Coalition for Acetone Fair Trade, a coalition consisting of AdvanSix, Altivia Petrochemicals and Olin Corporation. It says enough domestic manufacturers and workers support the petition for Commerce to begin AD duty investigations, as long as INEOS, a major acetone manufacturer, is disregarded because it purportedly is related to a Belgian producer and imports some acetone.
Proposed Scope
The merchandise covered by this petition is all grades of liquid or aqueous acetone. Acetone is also known under the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (“IUPAC”) name propan-2-one. In addition to the IUPAC name, acetone is also referred to as B-ketopropane (or “beta-ketopropane”), ketone propane, methyl ketone, dimethyl ketone, DMK, dimethyl carbonyl, propanone, 2-propanone, dimethyl formaldehyde, pyroacetic acid, pyroacetic ether, and pyroactic spirit. Acetone is an isomer of the chemical formula C3H6O, with a specific molecular formula of CH3COCH3 or (CH3)2CO.
The scope includes acetone that is combined or mixed with other products, including, but not limited to, benzene, diethyl ether, methanol, chloroform and ethanol. For such combined products, only the acetone component is covered by the scope of these investigations. Acetone that has been combined with other products is included within the scope, regardless of whether the combining occurs in third countries.
Acetone that is otherwise subject to these investigations is not excluded when commingled with acetone from sources not subject to these investigations. Only the subject merchandise component of such commingled products is covered by the scope of these investigations.
The Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) registry number for acetone is 67-64-1.
The merchandise covered by these investigations is currently classifiable under Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) subheadings 2914.11.1000 and 2914.11.5000. Although these HTSUS subheadings and CAS registry number are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the scope of these investigations is dispositive.
Commerce Accepting Comments on Petition Support
The Commerce Department is accepting comments on domestic industry support for the petitions to determine whether the petitions meet the dual requirements of support by domestic producers or workers accounting for (1) at least 25% of the total production of the domestic-like product and (2) more than 50% of the production of the domestic-like product produced by that portion of the industry expressing support for, or opposition to, the petition. If the petitions meet these requirements, among others, Commerce will initiate antidumping duty investigations that could lead to permanent antidumping duty orders. Comments are due by around March 10.
Email ITTNews@warren-news.com for a copy of the petition.