AD: Brazil, Ecuador, India & Thailand Certain Frozen and Canned Warmwater Shrimp

The ITA states that it has made a final negative critical circumstances determination for HLL, an Indian company. As a result, the ITA states it will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to terminate the retroactive suspension of liquidation for HLL between May 6, 2004 and August 4, 2004, which was instituted due to the preliminary affirmative critical circumstances finding. In addition, CBP shall also release any bond or other security, and refund any cash deposit required for HLL entries whose liquidation was suspended retroactively. With respect to Thailand, the ITA continues to find that critical circumstances do not exist with regard to imports of subject merchandise.

The ITA is also directing CBP to continue to suspend liquidation of all entries of subject merchandise from Brazil, Ecuador, India (including HLL), and Thailand that have a time of entry on or after August 4, 2004 (or in the case of EMPAF on or after August 30, 2004, due to an amended preliminary AD duty determination).

The ITA is expected to instruct CBP to require a cash deposit or the posting of a bond at the revised or continuing AD weighted average margins listed below, for entries of subject merchandise with a time of entry on or after December 23, 2004:

*Companies that are part of the Rubicon Group and have been assigned the same AD duty margin. The five companies with preliminary results of "n/a" were not listed in the preliminary AD duty determination.

Additional Exclusions Added to Scope of the Investigation

The ITA has revised the scope of the investigation for each of these countries by adding two additional items that are excluded from the scope of the investigation (for a total of 7 excluded items). These additional exclusions result from November 29, 2004 final "scope of investigation" decisions, and read:

(6) certain dusted shrimp; and (7) certain battered shrimp. Dusted shrimp is a shrimp-based product: (1) That is produced from fresh (or thawed-from-frozen) and peeled shrimp; (2) to which a dusting'' layer of rice or wheat flour of at least 95 percent purity has been applied; (3) with the entire surface of the shrimp flesh thoroughly and evenly coated with the flour; (4) with the non-shrimp content of the end product constituting between four and 10 percent of the product's total weight after being dusted, but prior to being frozen; and (5) that is subjected to IQF freezing immediately after application of the dusting layer. Battered shrimp is a shrimp-based product that, when dusted in accordance with the definition of dusting above, is coated with a wet viscous layer containing egg and/or milk, and par-fried.

(Subscribers should note that the final AD determination "scope of the investigation" with respect to subject merchandise from China and Vietnam do not reflect these additional exclusions; however, they are footnoted in a discussion of the "scope of investigation" decisions made by the ITA, and are included in ITT's summary of the China and Vietnam final AD determinations. (See ITT's Online Archives or 12/09/04 issue, 04120950 for BP summary of China and Vietnam final determinations.)

According to ITA sources, the final determination "scope of investigation" for subject merchandise from China and Vietnam should explicitly contain these two additional exclusions.)

"Scope of Investigation" Decisions

The ITA has issued nine scope decisions (on the date in parenthesis) regarding the scope of the merchandise covered by this investigation. In these decisions, the ITA:

1. declined to expand the scope of this investigation to include fresh (never frozen) shrimp (05/21/04);
2. found that, pursuant to a request from Ocean Duke, its Seafood Mix'' is excluded from the scope of this investigation (07/02/04);
3. found that salad shrimp, sold in counts of 250 pieces or higher, are included within the scope of the this investigation (07/02/04);
4. found Macrobrachium Rosenbergii and organic shrimp are included within the scope of this investigation (07/02/04);
5. found that peeled shrimp are included within the scope of this investigation (07/02/04);
6. found that a shrimp sauce is excluded from the scope of this investigation (11/29/04);
7. found Xian-Ning Seafood Co., Ltd.'s scampi shrimp is included within the scope of this investigation (11/29/04);
8. found certain dusted shrimp are outside the scope of this investigation (11/29/04); and
9. found certain battered shrimp are outside the scope of this investigation (11/29/04).

(See ITA notices for further information, including complete scope of investigation. See ITT's Online Archives or 08/05/04 news, 04080535, for BP summary of the preliminary affirmative AD duty determinations for subject merchandise from Brazil, Ecuador, India, and Thailand.

See ITT's Online Archives or 08/31/04 news, 04083137, for BP summary of the amended preliminary affirmative AD duty determination for subject merchandise from Brazil.

See ITT's Online Archives or 12/09/04 news, 04120950, for BP summary of the final affirmative AD duty determinations for subject merchandise from China and Vietnam.)

ITA Notices (FR Pub 12/23/04) available at

Brazil: http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/06jun20041800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2004/pdf/04-28110.pdf

Ecuador: http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/06jun20041800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2004/pdf/04-28169.pdf

India: http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/06jun20041800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2004/pdf/04-28170.pdf

Thailand: http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/06jun20041800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2004/pdf/04-28171.pdf