The Court of International Trade upheld the Commerce Department's finding that the South Korean government doesn't subsidize the steel industry via the provision of electricity for less than adequate remuneration. Judge Jennifer Choe-Groves, issuing a nearly identical opinion in a second case brought by countervailing duty petitioner Nucor Corp. (see 2304190017), said the agency permissibly analyzed whether the electricity prices paid by all companies, including the two CVD respondents, were consistent with market principles and supported its decision with substantial evidence.

The Court of International Trade on April 19 remanded the results of an antidumping duty review on xanthan gum from China back to the Commerce Department. Judge Jennifer Choe-Groves ordered Commerce to reconsider its use of adverse facts available when it calculated a separate rate for Chinese producer Meihua, its use of a simple average in separate rate calculations., and whether Deosen Biochemical Ltd. and Deosen Biochemical (Ordos) Ltd. should be combined into a single entity.

The Commerce Department properly found that a particular market situation did not exist in South Korea affecting inputs for oil country tubular goods from South Korea, the Court of International Trade ruled in a case on an antidumping review on Korean OCTG. Judge Jennifer Choe-Groves said the agency legally found that hot-rolled coil imports from China and South Korea's electricity market did not constitute a PMS.

The Commerce Department must reconsider its explanation that all costs stemming from a merger are for expanding normal business operations and thus not extraordinary, the Court of International Trade ruled April 20. Judge Gary Katzmann said Commerce laid out this explanation "without citing to agency practice or court precedent, or any accounting principles supporting its position."

The Court of International Trade remanded a Commerce Department scope ruling that found that two-ply panels imported from China to Vietnam fell under the scope of the antidumping and countervailing duty orders on hardwood plywood from China. Judge Mark Barnett said the scope language and the (k)(1) sources confirm the unambiguous meaning of the orders' scope, which excludes the two-ply panels. The court also upheld Commerce's rejection of Interglobal Forest's initial and rebuttal scope comments and ordered that Vietnam Finewood Co. be dismissed from the case since the company dissolved in 2019.

The Court of International Trade upheld the Commerce Department's finding that the South Korean government's provision of electricity was for less than adequate remuneration but did not confer a benefit in a countervailing duty review. Judge Jennifer Choe-Groves ruled the agency permissibly analyzed whether the electricity prices paid by all companies, including the two CVD respondents, were consistent with market principles and supported its decision with substantial evidence.

The Court of International Trade on April 19 remanded the final results of an antidumping duty review on xanthan gum for the Commerce Department to reconsider its use of adverse facts available when it assigned a dumping rate of 154.07% to Chinese producer Meihua Group, its separate rate calculation for two other respondents, and whether it could combine Deosen Biochemical Ltd. and Deosen Biochemical (Ordos) Ltd. into a single entity. Judge Jennifer Choe-Groves said Commerce failed to fulfill its statutory obligation by not swiftly informing Meihua of a deficiency in its submission before determining it failed to cooperate.

The Court of International Trade upheld in part and sent back in part the Commerce Department's remand results in a case on the 2018-19 antidumping duty review on uncoated paper from Brazil. Judge Gary Katzmann ruled Commerce properly found that respondent Suzano's derivative losses were not investment losses or extraordinary. Suzano had said the losses were extraordinary and thus should be excluded from its costs of production.

Importer SXP Schulz Xtruded Products needed a protest to properly challenge CBP's failure to apply a Section 232 duty exclusion on four entries of its steel forged and turned bars, the Court of International Trade ruled. Dismissing the case for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, Judge Jennifer Choe-Groves held that SXP could have filed for an extension of liquidation while it was waiting for the Commerce Department to correct the erroneous exclusion it issued or simply have filed a protest, which would have queued up jurisdiction under Section 1581(a).

Correction: The Court of International Trade on April 19 remanded the final results of an antidumping duty review on xanthan gum for the Commerce Department to reconsider its use of adverse facts available when it assigned a dumping rate of 154.07% to Chinese producer Meihua Group, its separate rate calculation for two other respondents, and whether it could combine Deosen Biochemical Ltd. and Deosen Biochemical (Ordos) Ltd. into a single entity. Judge Jennifer Choe-Groves said Commerce failed to fulfill its statutory obligation by not swiftly informing Meihua of a deficiency in its submission before determining it failed to cooperate.