Target Corp. v. United States

609 F.3d 1352, 32 I.T.R.D. (BNA) 1193, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 12602, 2010 WL 2472484
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
DecidedJune 21, 2010
Docket2009-1518, 2009-1519
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 609 F.3d 1352 (Target Corp. v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Target Corp. v. United States, 609 F.3d 1352, 32 I.T.R.D. (BNA) 1193, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 12602, 2010 WL 2472484 (Fed. Cir. 2010).

Opinion

GAJARSA, Circuit Judge.

This case comes to us on appeal from the Court of International Trade. At issue is whether the Court of International Trade correctly sustained the U.S. Department of Commerce’s (“Commerce”) final affirmative circumvention determination that petroleum wax candles with 50% or more vegetable wax (“mixed-wax candles”) are later-developed merchandise covered by the antidumping duty order on petroleum wax candles from China. Target Corp. v. United States, 626 F.Supp.2d 1285 (Ct. Int’l Trade 2009) (“Target II”). Because Commerce’s reasonable interpretation of the relevant Congressional statute is entitled to Chevron deference and because Commerce’s determination rested on substantial evidence, we affirm.

Background

I.

Importers of goods into the United States are subject to antidumping duties under Section 736(a) of the Tariff Act of 1930 if (1) Commerce finds that “a class or kind of foreign merchandise is being, or is likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value [ (“LTFV”)];” and (2) the U.S. International Trade Commission (“ITC”) fn(js that a domestic industry is materially injured (or is threatened with material injury) or the establishment of an industry in the United States is materially retarded “by reason of imports of that merchandise, or by reason of sales (or the likelihood of sales) of that merchandise for importation.” 19 U.S.C. § 1673 (emphasis added); see also Viraj Group v. United States, 476 F.3d 1349, 1351 (Fed.Cir.2007).

To combat circumvention of antidumping orders, “Congress has provided that Commerce’s consideration of certain types of articles within the scope of an [antidumping duty] order will be a proper clarification or interpretation of the order instead of improper expansion or change even where these products do not fall within the order’s literal scope.” Wheatland Tube Co. v. United States, 161 F.3d 1365, 1370 (Fed.Cir.1998). These articles include: (1) merchandise completed or assembled in the United States whose “parts or components [are] produced in the foreign country with respect to which [an antidumping duty] order ... applies,” 19 U.S.C. § 1677j(a); (2) merchandise “completed or assembled in another foreign country from merchandise which ... is subject to [an antidumping duty] order or ... is produced in the foreign country with respect to which [the] order ... applies,” id. § 1677j(b); (3) merchandise “altered in form or appearance in minor respects ... whether or not included in the same tariff classification,” id. § 1677j(c); and (4) later-developed merchandise that would have been included in the order, see id. § 16773(d)-

*1356 This case involves the last category of those articles, “later-developed” merchandise, which is governed by 19 U.S.C. § 1677j(d). Section 1677j(d) codifies Commerce’s administrative practice for analyzing whether later-developed merchandise falls within the scope of an antidumping duty order. See H.R.Rep. No. 100-576, at 601 (1988), reprinted in 1988 U.S.C.C.A.N. 1547, 1634 (“This provision is intended to clarify and codify current Commerce Department authority, which has been recognized by the courts.”).

II.

In 1986, Commerce issued an antidumping duty order on petroleum wax candles from China. Petroleum Wax Candles from the People’s Republic of China, 51 Fed.Reg. 30,686 (Aug. 28, 1986) (“Candles Antidumping Order ”). In the LTFV proceeding, Commerce defined the subject merchandise, in relevant part, as “petroleum wax candles made from petroleum wax.” Petroleum Wax Candles from the People’s Republic of China, 51 Fed.Reg. 25,085 (Jul. 10,1986). For the corresponding injury investigation, the ITC defined the domestic like product, in relevant part, as candles “composed of over 50 percent petroleum wax.” Candles from the People’s Republic of China, USITC Pub. 1888, Inv. No. 731-TA-282, at 2-3 (Aug.1986) (“ITC Final Report ”).

Commerce, in a series of scope determinations, recognized that the ITC’s percentage-based like product definition mandated that candles containing less than 50% petroleum wax be excluded from the scope of the Candles Antidumping Order. See, e.g., Petroleum Wax Candles from the People’s Republic of China, Final Scope Ruling, A-570-504 (Dec. 10, 1998) (“Costco Wholesale ”) (candles composed of 19% petroleum wax and 81% beeswax excluded from the Candles Antidumping Order for not satisfying Commission’s like product definition of petroleum wax candles).

In 2004, the domestic interested party, the National Candle Association (“NCA”), petitioned Commerce to initiate a later-developed merchandise anticircumvention inquiry and determine whether petroleum candles “containing palm or vegetable wax as the majority ingredient” were circumventing the Candles Antidumping Order. NCA claimed that the late-1990s development of mixed-wax candles, which allegedly were indistinguishable by the consumer from petroleum wax candles, enabled importers to completely avoid paying anti-dumping duties on 87% of their candles imported from China. In March 2005, Commerce initiated the inquiry. Petroleum Wax Candles from the People’s Republic of China, 70 Fed.Reg. 10,962, 10,963 (Mar. 7, 2005) (“Notice of Initiation”).

As Commerce was commencing the later-developed merchandise anticircumvention inquiry, the ITC was coincidentally conducting a second five-year sunset review of the Candles Antidumping Order. See Candles from the People’s Republic of China, USITC Pub. 3790, Inv. No. 731-TA-282 (July 2005) {“Second Sunset Review”). The lone participant in the Second Sunset Review, NCA, urged the ITC to re-examine the domestic like product definition from the ITC Final Report and include “all blended candles” regardless of the proportion of petroleum wax. Second Sunset Review at 7. The ITC then redefined the domestic like product “to include all blended candles,” or more simply, candles “containing any amount of petroleum wax.” Id. at 9. No party challenged the Second Sunset Review.

Subsequently, Commerce completed the anticircumvention inquiry and determined that mixed-wax candles containing “any amount” of petroleum wax were within the scope of the Candles Antidumping Order. Petroleum Wax Candles from the People’s Republic of China, 71 Fed.Reg. 59,075, *1357 59,077-78 (Oct. 6, 2006) (“Final Determination ”).

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609 F.3d 1352, 32 I.T.R.D. (BNA) 1193, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 12602, 2010 WL 2472484, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/target-corp-v-united-states-cafc-2010.