The U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration is conducting an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on tapered roller bearings and parts from China. [Commerce Case No. A-570-601; 5251R9N7].

The period being reviewed is June 1, 2007 through May 31, 2008, and this particular review is covering only Peer Bearing Changshan (CPZ).

Preliminarily, Commerce determined CPZ made sales below normal value during that period, and so antidumping duties will continue to apply to CPZ.

The antidumping duty being assessed, has been calculated at 32.02%, below the PRC-wide rate of 92.84% applied to imports from companies not requesting individual reviews.

In other words, 92.84% is the standard rate for tapered roller bearings and parts from China, and the "all other" duty applied when no company-by-company finding is made. In Peer Bearing CPZ's situation, they were preliminarily able to prove the lower rate of 32.02% should be applied.

Illustrating just how long the findings can go on even in a relatively simple instance, Commerce received requests to review TRBs from China in June 2008. Both CPZ and Timken requested reviews targeting CPZ only. Commerce issued its first questionnaires to CPZ beginning in September 2008 and they continued regularly through mid-April 2009. Commerce reviews, including on-site reviews, took until mid-June 2009. The review has been extended through December 7.

Interested parties have until December 7, 2009 to comment to the U.S. Department of Commerce, at which point this preliminary finding becomes final.