Steel Nail Importer Challenges Use of AFA for Non-Selected Companies' Rate at CIT

U.S. importer CME Acquisitions filed a complaint on March 6 at the Court of International Trade to contest the adverse facts available rate for the non-selected companies in the 2021-22 review of the antidumping duty order on stainless steel sheet and strip in coils from Taiwan (CME Acquisitions v. United States, CIT # 24-00032).

The importer noted that the review covered 61 exporters and that the two picked as mandatory respondents both told Commerce of their "intent not to participate." Preliminarily, the agency gave the two firms a 21.10% AD rate, which is the highest final dumping margin calculated for an exporter's direct U.S. shipments based on AFA. The non-selected companies got a 4.4% preliminary rate.

However, in the final results, the non-selected companies were assigned the 21.10% AFA rate. The complaint said this change "was arbitrary and capricious, an unlawful and unexplained departure from agency practice, not supported by substantial evidence and otherwise not in accordance with law."