Steel Wire Garment Hangers from Taiwan and Vietnam
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Steel Wire Garment Hangers from Taiwan and Vietnam Investigation Nos. 701-TA-487 and 731-TA-1197-1198 (Preliminary) Publication 4305 February 2012 U.S. International Trade Commission Washington, DC 20436 U.S. International Trade Commission COMMISSIONERS Deanna Tanner Okun, Chairman Irving A. Williamson, Vice Chairman Daniel R. Pearson Shara L. Aranoff Dean A. Pinkert David S. Johanson Karen Laney Acting Director of Operations Staff assigned Jennifer Merrill, Investigator Stefania Pozzi Porter, Investigator Kathryn Lundquist, Industry Analyst Marin Weaver, Economist Mary Klir, Accountant Mary Jane Alves, Attorney Douglas Corkran, Supervisory Investigator Address all communications to Secretary to the Commission United States International Trade Commission Washington, DC 20436 U.S. International Trade Commission Washington, DC 20436 www.usitc.gov Steel Wire Garment Hangers from Taiwan and Vietnam Investigation Nos. 701-TA-487 and 731-TA-1197-1198 (Preliminary) Publication 4305 February 2012 CONTENTS Page Determinations.................................................................. 1 Views of the Commission ......................................................... 3 Part I: Introduction ............................................................ I-1 Background .................................................................. I-1 Statutory criteria and organization of the report...................................... I-1 Statutory criteria ........................................................... I-1 Organization of the report.................................................... I-2 U.S. market summary.......................................................... I-2 Summary data and data sources .................................................. I-3 Previous and related investigations................................................ I-3 Nature and extent of alleged subsidies and sales at LTFV .............................. I-4 Alleged subsidies........................................................... I-4 Alleged sales at LTFV ....................................................... I-4 The subject merchandise........................................................ I-5 Commerce’s scope.......................................................... I-5 U.S. tariff treatment......................................................... I-5 The domestic like product ....................................................... I-6 Description and applications ..................................................... I-6 Manufacturing processes ........................................................ I-7 Domestic like product issues .................................................... I-9 Part II: Conditions of competition in the U.S. market ................................ II-1 U.S. market characteristics...................................................... II-1 Channels of distribution ........................................................ II-1 Geographic distribution ........................................................ II-2 Supply and demand considerations ................................................ II-3 U.S. supply ............................................................... II-3 U.S. demand .............................................................. II-6 Substitutability issues .......................................................... II-7 Factors affecting purchases decisions ........................................... II-7 Comparison of U.S.-produced and imported SWG hangers.......................... II-8 Part III: U.S. producers’ production, shipments, and employment ...................... III-1 U.S. producers ............................................................... III-1 U.S. capacity, production, and capacity utilization ................................... III-3 U.S. producers’ shipments ...................................................... III-4 U.S. producers’ inventories ..................................................... III-4 U.S. producers’ imports and purchases ............................................. III-4 U.S. employment, wages, and productivity ......................................... III-5 i CONTENTS Page Part IV: U.S. imports, apparent consumption, and market shares ...................... IV-1 U.S. importers................................................................ IV-1 U.S. imports ................................................................. IV-1 Negligibility ................................................................. IV-6 Cumulation.................................................................. IV-7 Apparent U.S. consumption ..................................................... IV-9 U.S. market shares ............................................................ IV-10 Ratio of subject imports to U.S. production ......................................... IV-10 Part V: Pricing and related information ............................................ V-1 Factors affecting pricing........................................................ V-1 Raw material costs.......................................................... V-1 U.S. inland transportation costs................................................ V-1 Pricing practices.............................................................. V-2 Pricing methods ............................................................ V-2 Sales terms and discounts .................................................... V-3 Lead times .................................................................. V-3 Price data ................................................................... V-4 Price trends ............................................................... V-5 Price comparisons .......................................................... V-6 Lost revenues and lost sales ..................................................... V-6 Part VI: Financial condition of U.S. producers ...................................... VI-1 Introduction .................................................................. VI-1 Operations on steel wire garment hangers .......................................... VI-1 Variance analysis ............................................................. VI-2 Capital expenditures and research and development expenses ........................... VI-2 Assets and return on investment .................................................. VI-3 Capital and investment......................................................... VI-3 Part VII: Threat considerations and information on nonsubject countries ............... VII-1 The industry in Taiwan ......................................................... VII-1 The industry in Vietnam ........................................................ VII-2 U.S. importers’ inventories...................................................... VII-4 U.S. importers’ current orders ................................................... VII-4 Antidumping in third-country markets ............................................. VII-4 Information on nonsubject countries .............................................. VII-4 China .................................................................... VII-6 Mexico .................................................................... VII-7 ii CONTENTS Page Appendixes A. Federal Register notices........................................................ A-1 B. Conference witnesses .......................................................... B-1 C.Summary data................................................................ C-1 D. Nonsubject country price data ................................................... D-1 Note.–Information that would reveal confidential operations of individual concerns may not be published and therefore has been deleted. Such deletions are indicated by asterisks. UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION Investigation Nos. 701-TA-487 and 731-TA-1197-1198 (Preliminary) STEEL WIRE GARMENT HANGERS FROM TAIWAN AND VIETNAM DETERMINATIONS On the basis of the record1 developed in the subject investigations, the United States International Trade Commission (Commission) determines, pursuant to sections 703(a) and 733(a) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. '' 1671b(a) and 1673b(a)) (the Act), that there is a reasonable indication that an industry in the United States is materially injured by reason of imports from Taiwan and Vietnam of steel wire garment hangers, provided for in subheading 7326.20.00 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States, that are alleged to be sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV) and steel wire garment hangers from Vietnam that are allegedly subsidized by the Government of Vietnam. Pursuant to section 207.18 of the Commission’s rules, the Commission also gives notice of the commencement of the final phase of its investigations. The Commission will issue a final phase notice of scheduling, which will be published in the Federal Register as provided in section 207.21 of the Commission’s rules, upon notice from the Department of Commerce (Commerce) of affirmative preliminary determinations in the investigations under sections 703(b) or 733(b) of the Act, or, if the preliminary determinations are negative, upon notice of affirmative final determinations in those investigations under sections 705(a) or 735(a) of the Act. Parties that filed entries of appearance in the preliminary phase of the investigations need not enter a separate appearance for the final phase of the investigations. Industrial users, and, if the merchandise