Commerce issues preliminary affirmative dumping determination on OCTG from Taiwan

Department of Commerce

International Trade Administration

1. [A-583-881]

AGENCY:

Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.

SUMMARY:

The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines that certain oil country tubular goods (OCTG) from Taiwan are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV). The period of investigation (POI) is April 1, 2025, through March 31, 2026. Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary determination.

DATES:

Applicable November 4, 2026.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Monica Gillis or Braeden Lowe, AD/CVD Operations, Office V, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-6384 or (202) 482-9124, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

This preliminary determination is made in accordance with section 733(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Commerce published the notice of initiation of this investigation on April 28, 2026.^[1] On August 28, 2026, Commerce postponed the preliminary determination of this investigation and the revised deadline is now October 29, 2026.^[2]

For a complete description of the events that followed the initiation of this investigation, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.^[3] A list of topics included in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is included as Appendix II to this notice. The Preliminary Decision Memorandum is a public document and is on file electronically via Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS), which is available to registered users at https://access.trade.gov. In addition, a complete version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly at https://access.trade.gov/​frnotices.

Scope of the Investigation

The product covered by this investigation is OCTG from Taiwan. For a complete description of the scope of this investigation, see Appendix I.

Scope Comments

In accordance with the Preamble to Commerce's regulations,^[4] the Initiation Notice set aside a period of time for parties to raise issues regarding product coverage ( i.e., scope).^[5] Certain interested parties commented on the scope of the investigation as it appeared in the Initiation Notice, whereby they requested that Commerce find certain mechanical pipe products to be outside the scope of this investigation. These products include: mechanical pipe for oilfield tools, mechanical pipe for perforating guns, and expandable mechanical pipe.

We note that there is an ongoing scope inquiry related to the antidumping duty orders on OCTG from Argentina and Mexico with respect to these same mechanical pipe products.^[6] In that inquiry, Commerce preliminarily found that the products were outside the scope of the orders,^[7] based on comments identical to the scope comments received in this investigation. Consistent with that finding, Commerce preliminarily finds and clarifies that mechanical pipe for oilfield tools, mechanical pipe for perforating guns, and expandable mechanical pipe are outside the scope of this investigation. Because this is a clarification, Commerce is not preliminarily modifying the scope language as it appeared in the Initiation Notice. See the scope in Appendix I to this notice.

The final determination in the above-referenced scope inquiry is currently scheduled to be made no later than December 22, 2026.^[8] We intend to consider that final determination when making a final scope ruling in this investigation. Case briefs or other written comments regarding the scope of this investigation may be submitted to the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance no later than 30 days after the preliminary determination of this investigation. Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in the case briefs regarding the scope of this investigation, may be filed not later than five days after the date for filing of the scope-related case briefs.^[9] Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), interested parties who wish to request a hearing regarding the scope of this investigation, limited to issues raised in the scope case and rebuttal briefs, may do so in accordance with the instructions detailed below within 30 days after the date of publication of this notice.

Methodology

Commerce is conducting this investigation in accordance with section 731 of the Act. Commerce has calculated export prices in accordance with section 772(a) of the Act. Normal ( printed page 69533) value is calculated in accordance with section 773 of the Act. For a full description of the methodology underlying the preliminary determination, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

All-Others Rate

Sections 733(d)(1)(ii) and 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act provide that, in the preliminary determination, Commerce shall determine an estimated weighted-average dumping margin, i.e., the all-others rate, for all exporters and producers not individually examined. This rate shall be an amount equal to the weighted average of the estimated weighted-average dumping margins established for exporters and producers individually investigated, excluding any zero and de minimis margins, and any margins determined entirely under section 776 of the Act.

In this investigation, Commerce calculated estimated weighted-average dumping margins for Shin Yang Steel Co. Ltd. and Tension Steel Industries Co., Ltd. (collectively, the respondents) that are not zero, de minimis, or based entirely on facts otherwise available. Commerce calculated the all-others rate using a weighted average of the estimated weighted-average dumping margins calculated for the respondents using each company's publicly-ranged values for the merchandise under consideration.^[10]

Preliminary Determination

Commerce preliminarily determines that the following estimated weighted-average dumping margins exist:

Suspension of Liquidation

In accordance with section 733(d)(2) of the Act, Commerce will direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to suspend liquidation of entries of OCTG, as described in Appendix I, entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of this notice in the Federal Register . Further, pursuant to section 733(d)(1)(B) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(d), Commerce will instruct CBP to require a cash deposit equal to the estimated weighted-average dumping margin or the estimated all-others rate, as follows: (1) the cash deposit rate for the respondents listed above will be equal to the company-specific estimated weighted-average dumping margins determined in this preliminary determination; (2) if the exporter is not a respondent identified above, but the producer is, then the cash deposit rate will be equal to the company-specific estimated weighted-average dumping margin established for that producer of the subject merchandise; and (3) the cash deposit rate for all other producers and exporters will be equal to the all-others estimated weighted-average dumping margin. These suspension of liquidation instructions will remain in effect until further notice.

Disclosure

Commerce intends to disclose its calculations and analysis performed to interested parties for this preliminary determination within five days of any public announcement or, if there is no public announcement, within five days of the date of publication of this notice in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).

Consistent with 19 CFR 351.224(e), Commerce will analyze and, if appropriate, correct any timely allegations of significant ministerial errors by amending the preliminary determination. However, consistent with 19 CFR 351.224(d), Commerce will not consider incomplete allegations that do not address the significance standard under 19 CFR 351.224(g) following the preliminary determination. Instead, Commerce will address such allegations in the final determination together with issues raised in the case briefs or other written comments.

Verification

As provided in section 782(i)(1) of the Act, Commerce intends to verify the information relied upon in making its final determination.

Public Comment

Case briefs or other written comments, unrelated to scope, may be submitted to the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance no later than seven days after the date on which the last verification report is issued in this investigation. A timeline for the submission of case briefs and written comments will be notified to interested parties at a later date. Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in the case briefs, may be filed not later than five days after the date for filing case briefs.^[11] Interested parties who submit case briefs or rebuttal briefs in this proceeding must submit: (1) a table of contents listing each issue; and (2) a table of authorities.^[12]

As provided under 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2)(iii) and (d)(2)(iii), we request that interested parties provide at the beginning of their briefs a public, executive summary for each issue raised in their briefs.^[13] Further, we request that interested parties limit their executive summary of each issue to no more than 450 words, not including citations. We intend to use the executive summaries as the basis of the comment summaries included in the issues and decision memorandum that will accompany the final determination in this investigation. We request that interested parties include footnotes for relevant citations in the executive summary of each issue. Note that Commerce has amended certain of its requirements pertaining to the service of documents in 19 CFR 351.303(f).^[14]

Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), interested parties who wish to request a hearing, limited to issues raised in the case and rebuttal briefs, must submit a written request to the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. Department of Commerce, within 30 days after the date of publication of this notice. Requests should contain: (1) the party's name, address, and telephone number; (2) the number of participants, and whether any participant is a foreign national; and (3) a list of the issues to be discussed. If a request for a hearing is made, ( printed page 69534) Commerce intends to hold the hearing at a time and date to be determined. Parties should confirm by telephone the date, time, and location of the hearing two days before the scheduled date.

Postponement of Final Determination and Extension of Provisional Measures

Section 735(a)(2) of the Act provides that a final determination may be postponed until not later than 135 days after the date of the publication of the preliminary determination if, in the event of an affirmative preliminary determination, a request for such postponement is made by exporters who account for a significant proportion of exports of the subject merchandise, or in the event of a negative preliminary determination, a request for such postponement is made by the petitioner. Section 351.210(e)(2) of Commerce's regulations requires that a request by exporters for postponement of the final determination be accompanied by a request for extension of provisional measures from a four-month period to a period not more than six months in duration.

On September 8, 2026, pursuant to 19 CFR 351.210(e), the respondents requested that Commerce postpone the final determination and that provisional measures be extended to a period not to exceed six months.^[15] In accordance with section 735(a)(2)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(b)(2)(ii), because: (1) the preliminary determination is affirmative; (2) the requesting exporters account for a significant proportion of exports of the subject merchandise; and (3) no compelling reasons for denial exist, Commerce is postponing the final determination and extending the provisional measures from a four-month period to a period not greater than six months. Accordingly, Commerce will make its final determination no later than 135 days after the date of publication of this preliminary determination.

U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) Notification

In accordance with section 733(f) of the Act, Commerce will notify the ITC of its preliminary determination. If the final determination is affirmative, the ITC will determine before the later of 120 days after the date of this preliminary determination or 45 days after the final determination whether these imports are materially injuring, or threaten material injury to, the U.S. industry.

Notification to Interested Parties

This determination is issued and published in accordance with sections 733(f) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(c).

Dated: October 29, 2026.

Scot Fullerton,

Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Operations.

Appendix I

Scope of the Investigation

The merchandise covered by this investigation is certain oil country tubular goods (OCTG), which are hollow steel products of circular cross-section, including oil well casing and tubing, of iron (other than cast iron) or steel (both carbon and alloy), whether seamless or welded, regardless of end finish ( e.g., whether or not plain end, threaded, or threaded and coupled) whether or not conforming to American Petroleum Institute (API) or non-API specifications, whether finished (including limited service OCTG products) or unfinished (including green tubes and limited service OCTG products), whether or not thread protectors are attached. The scope of this investigation also covers OCTG coupling stock.

Subject merchandise includes material matching the above description that has been finished, packaged, or otherwise processed in a third country, including by performing any heat treatment, cutting, upsetting, threading, coupling, or any other finishing, packaging, or processing that would not otherwise remove the merchandise from the scope of this investigation if performed in the country of manufacture of the OCTG.

Excluded from the scope of this investigation are: casing, tubing, or coupling stock containing 10.5 percent or more by weight of chromium; drill pipe; unattached couplings; and unattached thread protectors.

The merchandise subject to this investigation is currently classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) under item numbers: 7304.29.1010, 7304.29.1020, 7304.29.1030, 7304.29.1040, 7304.29.1050, 7304.29.1060, 7304.29.1080, 7304.29.2010, 7304.29.2020, 7304.29.2030, 7304.29.2040, 7304.29.2050, 7304.29.2060, 7304.29.2080, 7304.29.3110, 7304.29.3120, 7304.29.3130, 7304.29.3140, 7304.29.3150, 7304.29.3160, 7304.29.3180, 7304.29.4110, 7304.29.4120, 7304.29.4130, 7304.29.4140, 7304.29.4150, 7304.29.4160, 7304.29.4180, 7304.29.5015, 7304.29.5030, 7304.29.5045, 7304.29.5060, 7304.29.5075, 7304.29.6115, 7304.29.6130, 7304.29.6145, 7304.29.6160, 7304.29.6175, 7305.20.2000, 7305.20.4000, 7305.20.6000, 7305.20.8000, 7306.29.1030, 7306.29.1090, 7306.29.2000, 7306.29.3100, 7306.29.4100, 7306.29.6010, 7306.29.6050, 7306.29.8110, and 7306.29.8150.

The merchandise subject to this investigation may also enter under the following HTSUS item numbers: 7304.39.0024, 7304.39.0028, 7304.39.0032, 7304.39.0036, 7304.39.0040, 7304.39.0044, 7304.39.0048, 7304.39.0052, 7304.39.0056, 7304.39.0062, 7304.39.0068, 7304.39.0072, 7304.39.0076, 7304.39.0080, 7304.59.6000, 7304.59.8015, 7304.59.8020, 7304.59.8025, 7304.59.8030, 7304.59.8035, 7304.59.8040, 7304.59.8045, 7304.59.8050, 7304.59.8055, 7304.59.8060, 7304.59.8065, 7304.59.8070, 7304.59.8080, 7305.31.4000, 7305.31.6090, 7306.30.5055, 7306.30.5090, 7306.50.5050, and 7306.50.5070.

The HTSUS subheadings and specifications above are provided for convenience and customs purposes only. The written description of the scope of this investigation is dispositive.

Appendix II

List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum

I. Summary

II. Background

III. Period of Investigation

IV. Particular Market Situation

V. Discussion of the Methodology

VI. Currency Conversion

VII. Recommendation

Footnotes

1.   See Certain Oil Country Tubular Goods from Austria, Taiwan, and the United Arab Emirates: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations,91 FR 22806 (April 28, 2026) ( Initiation Notice).

2.   See Oil Country Tubular Goods from Austria, Taiwan, and the United Arab Emirates: Postponement of Preliminary Determinations in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations,91 FR 55517 (August 28, 2026).

3.   See Memorandum, “Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary Affirmative Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation of Certain Oil Country Tubular Goods from Taiwan” dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).

4.   See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule,62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997) ( Preamble).

5.   See Initiation Notice,91 FR 22807.

6.   See Oil Country Tubular Goods from Argentina, Mexico, and the Russian Federation: Antidumping Duty Orders and Amended Final Affirmative Antidumping Duty Determination for the Russian Federation,87 FR 70785 (November 21, 2022).

7.   See Memorandum, “Preliminary Scope Ruling on Mechanical Pipe,” dated July 16, 2026 (barcode: 4936900-01).

8.   Id. at 2.

9.   See 19 CFR 351.309(d); see also Administrative Protective Order, Service, and Other Procedures in Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings,88 FR 67069, 67077 (September 29, 2023) ( APO and Service Procedures).

10.  With two respondents under examination, Commerce normally calculates: (A) a weighted-average of the estimated weighted-average dumping margins calculated for the examined respondents; (B) a simple average of the estimated weighted-average dumping margins calculated for the examined respondents; and (C) a weighted-average of the estimated weighted-average dumping margins calculated for the examined respondents using each company's publicly-ranged U.S. sales values for the merchandise under consideration. Commerce then compares (B) and (C) to (A) and selects the rate closest to (A) as the most appropriate rate for all other producers and exporters. See, e.g., Ball Bearings and Parts Thereof from France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom: Final Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Reviews, Final Results of Changed-Circumstances Review, and Revocation of an Order in Part,75 FR 53661, 53662 (September 1, 2010), and accompanying Issues and Decision Memorandum at Comment1. After performing this comparison, Commerce based the all-others rate on the publicly-ranged sales data of the mandatory respondents. For a complete analysis of the data, see the All-Others Rate Calculation Memorandum.

11.   See 19 CFR 351.309(d); see also APO and Service Procedures.

12.   See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2).

13.  We use the term “issue” here to describe an argument that Commerce would normally address in a comment of the Issues and Decision Memorandum.

14.   See APO and Service Procedures.

15.   See Respondents' Letter, “Request to Postpone the Final Determination,” dated September 8, 2026.

[FR Doc. 2026-22532 Filed 11-3-26; 8:45 am]

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