18-3-3906 US purchasers' questionnaire

OMB No. 3117-0016/USITC No. 18-3-3906; Expiration Date: 6/30/2020
(No response is required if currently valid OMB control number is not displayed)

U.S. PURCHASERS’ QUESTIONNAIRE
SILICOMANGANESE FROM CHINA AND UKRAINE
This questionnaire must be received by the Commission by July 27, 2018
See last page for filing instructions.
The information called for in this questionnaire is for use by the United States International Trade Commission in
connection with its reviews of the antidumping duty orders concerning silicomanganese from China and Ukraine (Inv. Nos.
731-TA-672-673 (Fourth Review)). The information requested in the questionnaire is requested under the authority of the
Tariff Act of 1930, title VII. This report is mandatory and failure to reply as directed can result in a subpoena or other order
to compel the submission of records or information in your firm’s possession (19 U.S.C. § 1333(a)). Further information
on this questionnaire can be obtained from Emily Burke (202-205-3191, [email protected]).
Name of firm
Address

______________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

City

State

Website

Zip Code

______________

__________________________________________________________________

Has your firm purchased silicomanganese (as defined on the next page) from any source (domestic or
foreign) at any time since January 1, 2012?

NO

(Si gn the certification below and promptly return only this page of the questionnaire to the Commission)

YES

(Compl ete all parts of the questionnaire, and return the entire questionnaire to the Commission)

Return questionnaire via the Commission Drop Box by clicking on the following link:
https://dropbox.usitc.gov/oinv/ (PIN: SIMN)

CERTIFICATION
I certify that the information herein supplied in response to this questionnaire is complete and correct to the best of my knowledge
and belief and understand that the information submitted is subject to audit and verification by the Commission. By means of this
certification I also grant consent for the Commission, and its employees and contract personnel, to use the information provided in
this questionnaire and throughout this proceeding in any other import-injury proceedings or reviews conducted by the Commission
on the same or similar merchandise.
I, the undersigned, acknowledge that information submitted in response to this request for information and throughout this
proceeding or other proceedings may be disclosed to and used: (i) by the Commission, its employees and Offices, and contract
personnel (a) for developing or maintaining the records of this or a related proceeding, or (b) in internal investigations, audits,
reviews, and evaluations relating to the programs, personnel, and operations of the Commission including under 5 U.S.C. Appendix
3; or (ii) by U.S. government employees and contract personnel, solely for cybersecurity purposes. I understand that all contract
personnel will sign appropriate nondisclosure agreements.
Name of Authorized Official

Title of Authorized Official

Date

Phone:
Signature

Email address

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese

Page 2

PART I.—GENERAL INFORMATION
Background.--On December 22, 1994, the Department of Commerce (“Commerce”) issued an
antidumping duty order on imports of silicomanganese from China, and on September 17, 2001,
Commerce issued an antidumping duty order on imports of silicomanganese from Ukraine. On October
2, 2017, the Commission instituted a reviews pursuant to section 751(c) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19
U.S.C. § 1675(c)) (the Act) to determine whether revocation of the orders would be likely to lead to
continuation or recurrence of material injury to the domestic industry within a reasonably foreseeable
time. If both the Commission and Commerce make an affirmative determination, the orders will remain
in place. If either the Commission or Commerce makes a negative determination, Commerce will revoke
the orders. Questionnaires and other information pertinent to this proceeding are available at
https://www.usitc.gov/investigations/701731/2017/silicomanganese_china_and_ukraine_fourth_revie
w/full_review.htm.
Silicomanganese.--Silicomanganese, which is sometimes called ferrosilicon manganese, is a ferroalloy
composed principally of manganese, silicon and iron, and normally contains much smaller proportions of
minor elements, such as carbon, phosphorus, and sulfur. Silicomanganese generally contains by weight
not less than 4 percent iron, more than 30 percent manganese, more than 8 percent silicon, and not
more than 3 percent phosphorus. All compositions, forms, and sizes of silicomanganese are included
within the scope of the order, including silicomanganese slag, fines, and briquettes. Silicomanganese is
used primarily in steel production as a source of both silicon and manganese.
Silicomanganese is currently classifiable under subheading 7202.30.00 of the Harmonized Tariff
Schedule of the United States (“HTSUS”). Some silicomanganese may also currently be classifiable under
HTSUS subheading 7202.99.80. The orders cover all silicomanganese, regardless of its tariff
classification. Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the
written description of the orders remain dispositive.
Purchaser.--Any firm engaged, either directly or through a parent company or subsidiary, in purchasing
silicomanganese from another firm that produces, imports, or otherwise distributes silicomanganese.
Reporting of information.--If information is not readily available from your records, provide carefully
prepared estimates. If your firm is completing more than one questionnaire in connection with this
proceeding (i.e., a producer, importer, and/or purchaser questionnaire), you need not respond to
duplicated questions.
Confidentiality.--The commercial and financial data furnished in response to this questionnaire that
reveal the individual operations of your firm will be treated as confidential by the Commission to the
extent that such data are not otherwise available to the public and will not be disclosed except as may
be required by law (see 19 U.S.C. § 1677f). Such confidential information will not be published in a
manner that will reveal the individual operations of your firm; however, general characterizations of
numerical business proprietary information (such as discussion of trends) will be treated as confidential
business information only at the request of the submitter for good cause shown.
Verification.--The information submitted in this questionnaire is subject to audit and verification by the
Commission. To facilitate possible verification of data, please keep all of your files, worksheets, and
supporting documents used in the preparation of the questionnaire response. Please also retain a copy
of the final document that you submit.

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Release of information.--The information provided by your firm in response to this questionnaire, as
well as any other business proprietary information submitted by your firm to the Commission in
connection with this proceeding, may become subject to, and released under, the administrative
protective order provisions of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. § 1677f) and section 207.7 of the
Commission’s Rules of Practice and Procedure (19 CFR § 207.7). This means that certain lawyers and
other authorized individuals may temporarily be given access to the information for use in connection
with this proceeding or other import-injury proceedings conducted by the Commission on the same or
similar merchandise; those individuals would be subject to severe penalties if the information were
divulged to unauthorized individuals.
I-1.

Establishments covered.--Provide the name and address of establishment(s) covered by this
questionnaire, if different from that listed on the cover page. Firms operating more than one
establishment should combine the data for all establishments into a single response.
“Establishment”--Each facility of a firm involved in the purchase of silicomanganese, including
auxiliary facilities operated in conjunction with (whether or not physically separate from) such
facilities.

I-2.

Ownership.--Is your firm owned, in whole or in part, by any other firm?
No
Firm name

Yes--List the following information.
Address

Extent of ownership
(percent)

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese
I-3.

Related importers/exporters.--Does your firm have any related firms, either domestic or
foreign, that import silicomanganese into the United States or that export silicomanganese to
the United States?
No

Yes--List the following information.

Firm name

I-4.

Country

Affiliation

Related producers.--Does your firm have any related firms, either domestic or foreign, that
produce silicomanganese?
No

Yes--List the following information.

Firm name and country

I-5.

Page 4

Country

Affiliation

Business plan.--Does your company or any related firm have a business plan or any internal
documents that describe, discuss, or analyze expected market conditions for silicomanganese?

No

Yes

If yes, please provide these documents. If you are not providing the
requested documents, please explain why not.

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PART II.--PURCHASES
Contact information.--Please identify the responsible individual and the manner by which Commission
staff may contact that individual regarding the confidential information submitted in this questionnaire.
Name
Title
Email
Telephone
II-1.

Purchases.—
(a)

Please estimate your firm’s total U.S. purchases of silicomanganese in 2017. (Do not
include imports for which your firm was the importer of record; such imports should be
reported in your U.S. importer’s questionnaire.)
Type of silicomanganese

Quantity (short tons)

ASTM A
ASTM B
ASTM C
High-phosphorus
Other
Total
(b)

0

Estimate the percentage of the quantity of your firm’s purchases of silicomanganese in
2017 that were produced in each of the specified countries.
Silicomanganese produced in:

Share of quantity of 2017 purchases

United States

%

China

%

Ukraine

%

All other countries:1

%

Sources unknown

%

Total (should sum to 100.0%)
1

Please identify these countries:

0.0 %

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese
II-2.

Page 6

Changes in purchasing patterns.--Please indicate how the shares of your firm’s purchases of
silicomanganese from different sources have changed since January 1, 2012.

Did not
Source of purchases purchase Decreased Increased Constant Fluctuated

Explanation for trend

United States
China
Ukraine
All other countries
Sources unknown
II-3.

Country knowledge.--Please indicate the countries of origin with which your firm has
experience or information in the silicomanganese market.
United
States

II-4.

China

Ukraine

Other
countries

Other countries (specify)

Supplier identification.--Please list your firm’s FIVE largest suppliers for silicomanganese since
January 1, 2012. Also, provide the share of the quantity of your firm’s total purchases of
silicomanganese that each of these suppliers accounted for in 2017.

No.

Supplier’s name

City and state

Share of quantity of
2017 purchases

1

%

2

%

3

%

4

%

5

%

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese

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PART III.--MARKET CHARACTERISTICS AND PURCHASING PRACTICES
III-1.

Firm type.--Which of the following best describes your firm as a purchaser of silicomanganese
(check all that apply)?
End user

Steel
producer

Distributor

Other

Describe other

If your firm is a distributor of silicomanganese, please answer questions III-2 and III-3.
If your firm is a steel producer or other end user of silicomanganese, please answer questions III-4 and
III-5.
III-2.

Competition for sales.--Do you compete for sales to your customers with the manufacturers or
importers from which you purchase silicomanganese?
No

III-3.

Yes

If yes, please describe.

Types of customers.--What are the major types of customers to which you sell silicomanganese?

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese
III-4.

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End uses.—
(a)

List the top 3 products you make using silicomanganese and estimate the percentage of
your total production cost that is accounted for by silicomanganese and by other inputs
(such as labor, energy, and other raw materials).
Share of total cost in each of the product(s) your
firm produces accounted for by
Product(s) your firm
produces

(b)

Other inputs
% +

%

=

0.0 %

% +

%

=

0.0 %

% +

%

=

0.0 %

Do ASTM A, ASTM B, ASTM C, and high-phosphorus silicomanganese have different end
uses?
No

(c)

Silicomanganese

Total
(should
sum to
100.0%
across)

Yes

If yes, please explain

Have there been any changes in the end uses of silicomanganese since January 1, 2012?
Do you anticipate any future changes?

Changes in end uses

No

Yes

Explain

Changes since
January 1, 2012
Anticipated changes
III-5.

Demand for end use products.-(a)

Has the demand for your firm’s final products incorporating silicomanganese changed
since January 1, 2012?
Increased

No change

Decreased

Fluctuated

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese
(b)

Has this had any effect on your firm’s demand for silicomanganese?
No

III-6.

Page 9

Yes

Explain

Substitutes.—
(a)

Can other products be substituted for silicomanganese?
No

Substitute

Yes--Please fill out the table.

End use in which this
substitute is used

Have changes in the price of this substitute
affected the price for silicomanganese?
No Yes

Explanation

1.
2.
3.
(b)

Have there been any changes in the number or types of products that can be
substituted for silicomanganese since January 1, 2012? Do you anticipate any future
changes?

Changes in substitutes No Yes
Changes since January
1, 2012
Anticipated changes

Explain

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese
III-7.

Page 10

Demand trends.-- Indicate how demand within the United States and outside of the United
States (if known) for silicomanganese has changed since January 1, 2012, and how you
anticipate demand will change in the future. Explain any trends and describe the principal
factors that have affected, and that you anticipate will affect, these changes in demand.

Overall
increase

Market

No
change

Overall
decrease

Fluctuate
with no
clear trend

Explanation and factors

Demand since January 1, 2012
Within the United States
Outside the United States
Anticipated future demand
Within the United States
Outside the United States
III-8.

Market studies.--Please provide as a separate attachment to this request any studies, surveys,
etc. that you are aware of that quantify and/or otherwise discuss silicomanganese supply
(including production capacity and capacity utilization) and demand in (1) the United States, (2)
each of the other major producing/consuming countries, including China and/or Ukraine, and (3)
the world as a whole. Of particular interest is such data from 2012 to the present and forecasts
for the future.

III-9.

Country preferences.--Do you or your customers ever specifically order silicomanganese from
one country in particular over other possible sources of supply?
No

Yes

If yes, identify the countries and explain.

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III-10. Importance of purchasing domestic product.--Please fill out the table below, estimating the
percentage of your firm’s total 2017 purchases of silicomanganese that required
silicomanganese produced in the United States.

Purchases that did not require domestic product
Purchases that were required by law or regulation to be domestic
product (e.g., government purchases under “Buy American” provisions)
Purchases that were not required by law or regulation, but were
required by your customers to be domestic product
Purchases that were required to be domestic product for other reasons
(explain:
)
Total (should sum to 100.0%)

Estimated percentage of
your firm’s total 2017
purchases of
silicomanganese
%
%
%
%
0.0 %

III-11. Conditions of competition.-(a) Is the silicomanganese market subject to business cycles (other than general economy-wide
conditions) and/or other conditions of competition distinctive to silicomanganese?
Check all that apply.

Please describe.

No

Skip to question III-12.

Yes-Business cycles (e.g.
seasonal business)
Yes-Other distinctive
conditions of competition
(b) If yes, have there been any changes in the business cycles or conditions of competition for
silicomanganese since January 1, 2012?
No

Yes

If yes, describe.

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III-12. Decisions based on producer and country-of-origin.--How often does your firm, and if you
know, do your customers, make purchasing decisions involving silicomanganese based on its
producer or country of origin?
Always

Usually

Sometimes

Never

If at least sometimes, explain.

Decision based on producer
Your firm
Your customers
Decision based on country of origin
Your firm
Your customers
III-13. Availability of supply.--Has the availability of silicomanganese in the U.S. market changed since
January 1, 2012? Do you anticipate any future changes?
Availability in the U.S.
market

Please explain, noting the countries and reasons for
No Yes the changes.

Changes since January 1, 2012:
U.S.-produced product
Imports from China
and/or Ukraine
Imports from all other
countries
Anticipated changes:
U.S.-produced product
Imports from China
and/or Ukraine
Imports from all other
countries
III-14. Availability of specific product types.--Are certain grades/types/sizes of silicomanganese only
available from certain country sources?
No

Yes

If yes, please identify the countries and the grade/type/size.

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III-15. Supply constraints.--Has any firm refused, declined, or been unable to supply your firm with
silicomanganese since January 1, 2012 (examples include placing customers on allocation or
“controlled order entry,” declining to accept new customers or renew existing customers,
delivering less than the quantity promised, being unable to meet timely shipment commitments,
etc.)?
No

Yes

If yes, please describe.

III-16. Purchasing frequency.-(a)

How frequently do you make purchases of silicomanganese (check one)?
Daily

(b)

Weekly

Monthly

Quarterly

Annually

Other

If other, specify

Do you expect this purchasing frequency to change in the next two years?
No

Yes

If yes, explain.

III-17. Number of suppliers contacted.--How many suppliers do you generally contact before making a
purchase? Between
and
firms.
III-18. Supplier negotiations.--Do your firm’s purchases of silicomanganese usually involve
negotiations between supplier and purchaser?

No

Yes

If yes, explain the factors you generally negotiate and note whether
your firm quotes competing prices during negotiations.

III-19. Change in suppliers.-- Has your firm changed suppliers since January 1, 2012?
No

Yes

If yes, please list the supplier(s), whether the firm was added or
dropped, and the reasons for the change.

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III-20. New suppliers.-(a)

Are you aware of any new suppliers, either foreign or domestic, that have entered the
market since January 1, 2012?
No

(b)

Yes

If yes, please identify the firms.

Do you expect new silicomanganese suppliers to enter the U.S. market?
No

Yes

If yes, please explain.

III-21. Supplier qualification.--Do you require your suppliers to be or to become certified or qualified
to sell silicomanganese to your firm?
If yes, provide the following information.
• The number of days to qualify a new supplier.
• A general description of the certification or qualification process. Also, a brief
description of the factors that you consider when qualifying a new supplier (e.g., quality
of product, reliability of supplier, etc.).

No

Yes

Number
of days Process and factors

III-22. Failure to certify.--Since January 1, 2012, have any domestic or foreign producers failed in their
attempts to certify or qualify their silicomanganese with your firm or have any producers lost
their approved status?

No

Yes

If yes, please identify these firms, the countries where they are located, and
the reasons why they failed the certification/qualification.

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III-23. Major purchasing factors.-- Please list, in order of their importance, the three major factors
your firm considers in deciding from whom to purchase silicomanganese (examples include
availability, extension of credit, contracts, price, quality, range of supplier’s product line,
traditional supplier, etc.).
1.
2.
3.
Please list any other factors that are very important in your purchase decisions:
III-24. Purchasing factors.--Please rate the importance of the following factors in your firm’s
purchasing decisions for silicomanganese.

Factor
Availability
Availability of different grades
Delivery terms
Delivery time
Discounts offered
Extension of credit
Made to ASTM specification
Minimum quantity requirements
Packaging
Phosphorus content
Price
Product consistency
Product range
Quality meets industry standards
Quality exceeds industry standards
Reliability of supply
Technical support/service
U.S. transportation costs

Very
important

Somewhat
important

Not
important

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III-25. Quality characteristics.--What characteristics does your firm consider when determining the
quality of silicomanganese?

III-26. Minimum quality.--How often does silicomanganese from the following countries meet
minimum quality specifications for your uses or your customers’ uses?
Source

Always

Usually

Sometimes

Rarely or
never

Don’t
know

United States
China
Ukraine
Other:
III-27. Frequency of decisions based on price.--How often does your firm purchase the
silicomanganese that is offered at the lowest price?
Always

Usually

Sometimes

Never

III-28. Price leaders.--A price leader is defined as (1) one or more firms that initiate a price change,
either upward or downward, that is followed by other firms, or (2) one or more firms that have a
significant impact on prices. A price leader is not necessarily the lowest-priced supplier.
Please list the names of any firms you considered price leaders in the silicomanganese market
since January 1, 2012.
Firm(s)

Describe how the firm(s) exhibited price leadership

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III-29. Changes in U.S. industry.-(a)

Please identify and discuss any improvements/changes in the U.S. silicomanganese
industry since January 1, 2012 and explain the factors, including the order(s) under
review, that were responsible for each improvement/change.

(b)

Please discuss any improvements/changes that you anticipate in the future in the U.S.
silicomanganese industry. Identify the time period and causes for these
improvements/changes.

III-30. Effect of revocation of orders.-- What do you think will be the effects on your firm and on the
U.S. market of any revocation of the antidumping duty orders on imports of silicomanganese
from China and/or Ukraine?

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PART IV.--PRODUCT COMPARISIONS
IV-1.

Interchangeability.--Is silicomanganese produced in the United States and in other countries
interchangeable (i.e., can they physically be used in the same applications)?
Please indicate A, F, S, N, or 0 in the table below:
A = the products from a specified country-pair are always interchangeable
F = the products are frequently interchangeable
S = the products are sometimes interchangeable
N = the products are never interchangeable
0 = no familiarity with products from a specified country-pair
Country-pair

China

Ukraine

Other countries

United States
China
Ukraine
For any country-pair producing silicomanganese which is sometimes or never
interchangeable, please identify the country-pair and explain the factors that limit or
preclude interchangeable use:

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese
IV-2.

Page 19

Interchangeability of grade.--Are different grades of silicomanganese interchangeable (i.e., can
they physically be used in the same applications/end-use products)?
Please indicate A, F, S, N, or 0 in the table below:
A = the products from a specified grade-pair are always interchangeable
F = the products are frequently interchangeable
S = the products are sometimes interchangeable
N = the products are never interchangeable
0 = no familiarity with products from a specified grade-pair
Country-pair

ASTM B

ASTM C

High-phosphorus

ASTM A
ASTM B
ASTM C
For any grade-pair of silicomanganese that is sometimes or never interchangeable, identify
the grade-pair and explain the factors that limit or preclude interchangeable use:

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese
IV-3.

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Factors other than price.--Are differences other than price (e.g., quality, availability,
transportation network, product range, technical support, etc.) between silicomanganese
produced in the United States and in other countries a significant factor in your firm’s purchases
of the products?
Please indicate A, F, S, N, or 0 in the table below:
A = such differences are always significant
F = such differences are frequently significant
S = such differences are sometimes significant
N = such differences are never significant
0 = no familiarity with products from a specified country-pair
Country-pair

China

Ukraine

Other countries

United States
China
Ukraine
For any country-pair for which factors other than price always or frequently are a significant
factor in your firm’s purchases of silicomanganese, identify the country-pair and report the
advantages or disadvantages imparted by such factors:

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese
IV-4.

Page 21

Factor country comparisons.--For the factors listed below, please rate how silicomanganese
produced in each country you identified in your response to question II-3 compares with
silicomanganese produced in each of the other countries you identified.

If you are unfamiliar with the product from a particular country, please leave the boxes for those
country comparisons blank.

Inferior

Comparable

Product from
China compared to
product from
Ukraine

Superior

Inferior

Comparable

Product from
United States
compared to
product from
Ukraine

Superior

Inferior

Comparable

Factor

Superior

Product from
United States
compared to
product from
China

Availability
Availability of different grades
Delivery terms
Delivery time
Discounts offered
Extension of credit
Made to ASTM specification
Minimum quantity requirements
Packaging
Phosphorus content
Price 1
Product consistency
Product range
Quality meets industry standards
Quality exceeds industry standards
Reliability of supply
Technical support/service
U.S. transportation costs1
1A

rating of superior on price and U.S. transportation costs indicates that the first country generally has lower
prices/U.S. transportation costs than the second country.

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese
IV-4.

Page 22

Continued.

If you are unfamiliar with the product from a particular country, please leave the boxes for those
country comparisons blank.

Inferior

Comparable

Superior

Inferior

Comparable

Product from
Product from
China compared to Ukraine compared
product from
to product from
Nonsubject
Nonsubject
countries
countries

Superior

Inferior

Comparable

Factor

Superior

Product from
United States
compared to
product from
Nonsubject
countries

Availability
Availability of different grades
Delivery terms
Delivery time
Discounts offered
Extension of credit
Made to ASTM specification
Minimum quantity requirements
Packaging
Phosphorus content
Price 1
Product consistency
Product range
Quality meets industry standards
Quality exceeds industry standards
Reliability of supply
Technical support/service
U.S. transportation costs1
1 A rating of

superior on price and U.S. transportation costs indicates that the first country generally has lower
prices/U.S. transportation costs than the second country.

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese
IV-5.

Page 23

Change in price.-(a)

Since January 1, 2012, has there been a change in the price of silicomanganese? If so,
has the price of U.S.-produced silicomanganese changed more or less than the price of
imported silicomanganese from China and/or Ukraine?
No change in price.
Prices have changed by the same amount.
Price of U.S.-produced silicomanganese has changed relative to the price of
silicomanganese from China.
Price of U.S.-produced silicomanganese has changed relative to the price of
silicomanganese from Ukraine.

(b)

If the price of U.S.-produced silicomanganese has changed relative to the price of
silicomanganese from China and/or Ukraine, the price of U.S.-produced silicomanganese
is now relatively
Higher

Lower
than those from China.
than those from Ukraine.

PART V.—ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
V-1. Effect of 232 investigation of steel on conditions of competition.-(a) Are you familiar with the 232 investigation conducted by the United States under section 232
of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 as amended (19 U.S.C. § 1862) on imports of certain steel
products and the related proclamations issued by the President or the subsequent imposition
of tariffs on imported steel products?
No (skip to V-2)

Yes--Please fill out the table.

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(b) Did the announcement of the section 232 investigation in April 2017 or the President’s
subsequent issuance of proclamations on certain imported steel products beginning in March
2018 impact the conditions of competition for silicomanganese used in the production of
steel?
No

Yes If yes, describe.

Announcement of the section 232
investigation in April 2017
Issuance of proclamations on certain
imported steel products beginning in
March 2018

V-2.

Other explanations.--If your firm would like to further explain a response to any question that
did not provide a narrative response box, please note the question number and the explanation
in the space provided below.

Business Proprietary
U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese
V-2.

Page 25

OMB statistics.--Please report the actual number of hours required and the cost to your firm of
completing this questionnaire.
Hours

Dollars

The questions in this questionnaire have been reviewed with market participants to ensure that
issues of concern are adequately addressed and that data requests are sufficient, meaningful, and
as limited as possible. Public reporting burden for this questionnaire is estimated to average 40
hours per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, gathering data, and completing
and reviewing the questionnaire.
We welcome comments regarding the accuracy of this burden estimate, suggestions for reducing
the burden, and any suggestions for improving this questionnaire. Please attach such comments
to your response or send to the Office of Investigations, USITC, 500 E St. SW, Washington, DC
20436.

Business Proprietary
U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Silicomanganese

Page 26

HOW TO FILE YOUR QUESTIONNAIRE RESPONSE
This questionnaire is available as a “fillable” form in MS Word format on the
Commission’s website at: LINK
Please do not attempt to modify the format or permissions of the questionnaire
document. Please submit the completed questionnaire using one of the methods noted
below. If your firm is unable to complete the MS Word questionnaire or cannot use one
of the electronic methods of submission, please contact the Commission for further
instructions.
• Upload via Secure Drop Box.—Upload the MS Word questionnaire along with a scanned copy of the
signed certification page (page 1) through the Commission’s secure upload facility:
Web address: https://dropbox.usitc.gov/oinv/

Pin: SIMN

• E-mail.—E-mail the MS Word questionnaire to [email protected]; include a scanned copy of the
signed certification page (page 1). Submitters are strongly encouraged to encrypt nonpublic documents
that are electronically transmitted to the Commission to protect your sensitive information from
unauthorized disclosure. The USITC secure drop-box system and the Electronic Document Information
System (EDIS) use Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) 140-2 cryptographic algorithms to
encrypt data in transit. Submitting your nonpublic documents by a means that does not use these
encryption algorithms (such as by email) may subject your firm’s nonpublic information to unauthorized
disclosure during transmission. If you choose a non-encrypted method of electronic transmission, the
Commission warns you that the risk of such possible unauthorized disclosure is assumed by you and not
by the Commission.
If your firm does not purchase this product, please fill out page 1, print, sign, and submit a scanned
copy to the Commission.
Parties to this proceeding.—If your firm is a party to this proceeding, it is required to serve a copy of the
completed questionnaire on parties to the proceeding that are subject to administrative protective
order (see 19 CFR § 207.7). A list of such parties may be obtained from the Commission’s Secretary (202205-1803). A certificate of service must accompany the completed questionnaire you submit (see 19 CFR
§ 207.7). Service of the questionnaire must be made in paper form.