FACT SHEET

Initiation of Antidumping Duty Investigations on Imports of

Certain Lined Paper Products from India, Indonesia, and the People’s Republic

of China and Countervailing Duty Investigations on Imports from India and Indonesia

On September 30, the Department of Commerce announced its decision to initiate antidumping duty (AD) investigations on imports of certain lined paper products from India, Indonesia, and the People’s Republic of China (PRC), and countervailing duty (CVD) investigations on imports from India and Indonesia.

Next Steps: A revised separate rate status application will be posted on the IA web site for the investigation of certain lined paper products from the PRC on the date of publication of the initiation notice in the Federal Register. The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) is scheduled to make its preliminary determinations in the AD and CVD investigations on or about October 24. If the ITC determines that there is a reasonable indication that imports from India, Indonesia, and the PRC are injuring or threatening material injury to the domestic industry, the investigations will continue. The Department is currently scheduled to make its preliminary countervailing duty determinations in December 2005 and its antidumping duty determinations in February 2006. If the ITC makes negative preliminary determinations, the investigations will be terminated.

Petitioners: The petitions requesting these investigations were filed by the Association of American School Paper Suppliers, an ad hoc trade association whose members are located in Nebraska, Tennessee, and Georgia.

Product Description: The scope of these investigations includes certain lined paper products, typically school supplies,¹ composed of or including paper that incorporates straight horizontal and/or vertical lines on ten or more paper sheets,² including but not limited to such products as single- and multi-subject notebooks, composition books, wireless notebooks, looseleaf or glued filler paper, graph paper, and laboratory notebooks, and with the smaller dimension of the paper measuring 6 inches to 15 inches (inclusive) and the larger dimension of the paper measuring 8-3/4 inches to 15 inches (inclusive). Subject lined paper products may be loose, packaged or bound using any binding method (other than case bound through the inclusion of binders board, a spine strip, and cover wrap). Subject merchandise may or may not contain any combination of a front cover, a rear cover, and/or backing of any composition, regardless of the inclusion of images or graphics on the cover, backing, or paper. Subject merchandise is within the scope of this petition whether or not the lined paper and/or cover are hole punched, drilled, perforated, and/or reinforced. Subject merchandise may contain accessory or informational items including but not limited to pockets, tabs, dividers, closure devices, index cards, stencils, protractors, writing implements, reference materials such as mathematical tables, or printed items such as sticker sheets or miniature calendars, if such items are physically incorporated , included with, or attached to the product, cover and/or backing thereto.

Merchandise subject to this investigation is typically imported under headings 4820.10.2050, 4810.22.5044, 4811.90.9090 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS).³ The tariff classifications are provided for convenience and U.S. Customs and Border Protection purposes; however, the written description of the scope of the investigation is dispositive.

For a complete scope description, see the AD or CVD initiation notice.

Initiated Dumping Margins:

*This is the weighted-average dumping margin for the range of margins alleged in the petition for the PRC. The range of margins is proprietary.  

Initiated Countervailing Net Subsidy Rates:

Case Calendar:

* These deadlines may be extended under the governing statute.

** This will take place only in the event of a final affirmative determination from the Department of Commerce.

*** This will take place only in the event of final affirmative determinations by both the Department and the ITC.

Import Statistics:

Source: U.S. ITC DataWeb under HTSUS subheadings 4820.10.2050, 4810.22.5044, and 4811.90.9000. In calculating the import volume for HTSUS subheadings 4811.90.9000 and 4810.22.5044, the Department converted import data obtained from the U.S. ITC's DataWeb into a unit basis by dividing the reported total weight (in kilograms) by 0.491262 kilograms, the per unit weight of the most common filler paper product (150-count filler paper), as indicated by Petitioner. See Petition, Volume I, page 9, Footnote 1. HTSUS subheading 4820.10.2050 did not require conversion.