19 U.S.C. § 1673c — Termination or suspension of investiga-

Page 357 TITLE 19—CUSTOMS DUTIES § 1673c EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1988 AMENDMENT Amendment by section 1323(b) of Pub. L. 100–418 effec- tive Aug. 23, 1988, amendment by section 1324(b)(2) of Pub. L. 100–418 applicable with respect to investigations initiated after Aug. 23, 1988, and amendment by section 1326(d)(1) of Pub. L. 100–418 applicable with respect to investigations initiated after Aug. 23, 1988, and to re- views initiated under section 1673e(c) or 1675 of this title after Aug. 23, 1988, see section 1337(a) to (c) of Pub. L. 100–418, set out as a note under section 1671 of this title. PLAN AMENDMENTS NOT REQUIRED UNTIL JANUARY 1, 1989 For provisions directing that if any amendments made by subtitle A or subtitle C of title XI [§§ 1101–1147 and 1171–1177] or title XVIII [§§ 1801–1899A] of Pub. L. 99–514 require an amendment to any plan, such plan amendment shall not be required to be made before the first plan year beginning on or after Jan. 1, 1989, see section 1140 of Pub. L. 99–514, as amended, set out as a note under section 401 of Title 26, Internal Revenue Code. § 1673c. Termination or suspension of investiga- tion (a) Termination of investigation upon with- drawal of petition (1) In general (A) Withdrawal of petition Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3), an investigation under this part may be terminated by either the administering au- thority or the Commission, after notice to all parties to the investigation, upon with- drawal of the petition by the petitioner or by the administering authority if the inves- tigation was initiated under section 1673a(a) of this title. (B) Refiling of petition If, within 3 months after the withdrawal of a petition under subparagraph (A), a new pe- tition is filed seeking the imposition of du- ties on both the subject merchandise of the withdrawn petition and the subject mer- chandise from another country, the admin- istering authority and the Commission may use in the investigation initiated pursuant to the new petition any records compiled in an investigation conducted pursuant to the withdrawn petition. This subparagraph ap- plies only with respect to the first with- drawal of a petition. (2) Special rules for quantitative restriction agreements (A) In general Subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C), the administering authority may not terminate an investigation under paragraph (1) by ac- cepting an understanding or other kind of agreement to limit the volume of imports into the United States of the subject mer- chandise unless the administering authority is satisfied that termination on the basis of that agreement is in the public interest. (B) Public interest factors In making a decision under subparagraph (A) regarding the public interest the admin- istering authority shall take into account— (i) whether, based upon the relative im- pact on consumer prices and the avail- ability of supplies of the merchandise, the agreement would have a greater adverse impact on United States consumers than the imposition of antidumping duties; (ii) the relative impact on the inter- national economic interests of the United States; and (iii) the relative impact on the competi- tiveness of the domestic industry pro- ducing the like merchandise, including any such impact on employment and in- vestment in that industry. (C) Prior consultations Before making a decision under subpara- graph (A) regarding the public interest, the administering authority shall, to the extent practicable, consult with— (i) potentially affected consuming indus- tries; and (ii) potentially affected producers and workers in the domestic industry pro- ducing the like merchandise, including producers and workers not party to the in- vestigation. (3) Limitation on termination by Commission The Commission may not terminate an in- vestigation under paragraph (1) before a pre- liminary determination is made by the admin- istering authority under section 1673b(b) of this title. (b) Agreements to eliminate completely sales at less than fair value or to cease exports of merchandise The administering authority may suspend an investigation if the exporters of the subject mer- chandise who account for substantially all of the imports of that merchandise agree— (1) to cease exports of the merchandise to the United States within 6 months after the date on which the investigation is suspended, or (2) to revise their prices to eliminate com- pletely any amount by which the normal value of the merchandise which is the subject of the agreement exceeds the export price (or the constructed export price) of that merchandise. (c) Agreements eliminating injurious effect (1) General rule If the administering authority determines that extraordinary circumstances are present in a case, it may suspend an investigation upon the acceptance of an agreement to revise prices from exporters of the subject merchan- dise who account for substantially all of the imports of that merchandise into the United States, if the agreement will eliminate com- pletely the injurious effect of exports to the United States of that merchandise and if— (A) the suppression or undercutting of price levels of domestic products by imports of that merchandise will be prevented, and (B) for each entry of each exporter the amount by which the estimated normal value exceeds the export price (or the con- structed export price) will not exceed 15 per- cent of the weighted average amount by Page 358 TITLE 19—CUSTOMS DUTIES § 1673c which the estimated normal value exceeded the export price (or the constructed export price) for all less-than-fair-value entries of the exporter examined during the course of the investigation. (2) ‘‘Extraordinary circumstances’’ defined (A) Extraordinary circumstances For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘‘extraordinary circumstances’’ means cir- cumstances in which— (i) suspension of an investigation will be more beneficial to the domestic industry than continuation of the investigation, and (ii) the investigation is complex. (B) ‘‘Complex’’ defined For purposes of this paragraph, the term ‘‘complex’’ means— (i) there are a large number of trans- actions to be investigated or adjustments to be considered, (ii) the issues raised are novel, or (iii) the number of firms involved is large. (d) Additional rules and conditions The administering authority may not accept an agreement under subsection (b) or (c) un- less— (1) it is satisfied that suspension of the in- vestigation is in the public interest, and (2) effective monitoring of the agreement by the United States is practicable. Where practicable, the administering authority shall provide to the exporters who would have been subject to the agreement the reasons for not accepting the agreement and, to the extent possible, an opportunity to submit comments thereon. (e) Suspension of investigation procedure Before an investigation may be suspended under subsection (b) or (c) the administering au- thority shall— (1) notify the petitioner of, and consult with the petitioner concerning, its intention to sus- pend the investigation, and notify other par- ties to the investigation and the Commission not less than 30 days before the date on which it suspends the investigation, (2) provide a copy of the proposed agreement to the petitioner at the time of the notifica- tion, together with an explanation of how the agreement will be carried out and enforced, and of how the agreement will meet the re- quirements of subsections (b) and (d) or (c) and (d), and (3) permit all interested parties described in section 1677(9) of this title to submit com- ments and information for the record before the date on which notice of suspension of the investigation is published under subsection (f)(1)(A). (f) Effects of suspension of investigation (1) In general If the administering authority determines to suspend an investigation upon acceptance of an agreement described in subsection (b) or (c), then— (A) it shall suspend the investigation, pub- lish notice of suspension of the investiga- tion, and issue an affirmative preliminary determination under section 1673b(b) of this title with respect to the subject merchan- dise, unless it has previously issued such a determination in the same investigation, (B) the Commission shall suspend any in- vestigation it is conducting with respect to that merchandise, and (C) the suspension of investigation shall take effect on the day on which such notice is published. (2) Liquidation of entries (A) Cessation of exports; complete elimi- nation of dumping margin If the agreement accepted by the admin- istering authority is an agreement described in subsection (b), then— (i) notwithstanding the affirmative pre- liminary determination required under paragraph (1)(A), the liquidation of entries of subject merchandise shall not be sus- pended under section 1673b(d)(2) of this title, (ii) if the liquidation of entries of such merchandise was suspended pursuant to a previous affirmative preliminary deter- mination in the same case with respect to such merchandise, that suspension of liq- uidation shall terminate, and (iii) the administering authority shall refund any cash deposit and release any bond or other security deposited under sec- tion 1673b(d)(1)(B) of this title. (B) Other agreements If the agreement accepted by the admin- istering authority is an agreement described in subsection (c), the liquidation of entries of the subject merchandise shall be sus- pended under section 1673b(d)(2) of this title, or, if the liquidation of entries of such mer- chandise was suspended pursuant to a pre- vious affirmative preliminary determination in the same case, that suspension of liquida- tion shall continue in effect, subject to sub- section (h)(3), but the security required under section 1673b(d)(1)(B) of this title may be adjusted to reflect the effect of the agree- ment. (3) Where investigation is continued If, pursuant to subsection (g), the admin- istering authority and the Commission con- tinue an investigation in which an agreement has been accepted under subsection (b) or (c), then— (A) if the final determination by the ad- ministering authority or the Commission under section 1673d of this title is negative, the agreement shall have no force or effect and the investigation shall be terminated, or (B) if the final determinations by the ad- ministering authority and the Commission under such section are affirmative, the agreement shall remain in force, but the ad- ministering authority shall not issue an antidumping duty order in the case so long as— (i) the agreement remains in force, Page 359 TITLE 19—CUSTOMS DUTIES § 1673c (ii) the agreement continues to meet the requirements of subsections (b) and (d), or (c) and (d), and (iii) the parties to the agreement carry out their obligations under the agreement in accordance with its terms. (g) Investigation to be continued upon request If the administering authority, within 20 days after the date of publication of the notice of sus- pension of an investigation, receives a request for the continuation of the investigation from— (1) an exporter or exporters accounting for a significant proportion of exports to the United States of the subject merchandise, or (2) an interested party described in subpara- graph (C), (D), (E), (F), or (G) of section 1677(9) of this title which is a party to the investiga- tion, then the administering authority and the Com- mission shall continue the investigation. (h) Review of suspension (1) In general Within 20 days after the suspension of an in- vestigation under subsection (c), an interested party which is a party to the investigation and which is described in subparagraph (C), (D), (E), (F), or (G) of section 1677(9) of this title may, by petition filed with the Commission and with notice to the administering author- ity, ask for a review of the suspension. (2) Commission investigation Upon receipt of a review petition under para- graph (1), the Commission shall, within 75 days after the date on which the petition is filed with it, determine whether the injurious effect of imports of the subject merchandise is elimi- nated completely by the agreement. If the Commission’s determination under this sub- section is negative, the investigation shall be resumed on the date of publication of notice of such determination as if the affirmative pre- liminary determination under section 1673b(b) of this title had been made on that date. (3) Suspension of liquidation to continue dur- ing review period The suspension of liquidation of entries of the subject merchandise shall terminate at the close of the 20-day period beginning on the day after the date on which notice of suspen- sion of the investigation is published in the Federal Register, or, if a review petition is filed under paragraph (1) with respect to the suspension of the investigation, in the case of an affirmative determination by the Commis- sion under paragraph (2), the date on which notice of an affirmative determination by the Commission is published. If the determination of the Commission under paragraph (2) is af- firmative, then the administering authority shall— (A) terminate the suspension of liquida- tion under section 1673b(d)(2) of this title, and (B) release any bond or other security, and refund any cash deposit, required under sec- tion 1673b(d)(1)(B) of this title. (i) Violation of agreement (1) In general If the administering authority determines that an agreement accepted under subsection (b) or (c) is being, or has been, violated, or no longer meets the requirements of such sub- section (other than the requirement, under subsection (c)(1), of elimination of injury) and subsection (d), then, on the date of publication of its determination, it shall— (A) suspend liquidation under section 1673b(d)(2) of this title of unliquidated en- tries of the merchandise made on the later of— (i) the date which is 90 days before the date of publication of the notice of suspen- sion of liquidation, or (ii) the date on which the merchandise, the sale or export to the United States of which was in violation of the agreement, or under an agreement which no longer meets the requirements of subsections (b) and (d), or (c) and (d), was first entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consump- tion, (B) if the investigation was not completed, resume the investigation as if its affirmative preliminary determination were made on the date of its determination under this para- graph, (C) if the investigation was completed under subsection (g), issue an antidumping duty order under section 1673e(a) of this title effective with respect to entries of merchan- dise liquidation of which was suspended, (D) if it considers the violation to be in- tentional, notify the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection who shall take appropriate action under paragraph (2), and (E) notify the petitioner, interested par- ties who are or were parties to the investiga- tion, and the Commission of its action under this paragraph. (2) Intentional violation to be punished by civil penalty Any person who intentionally violates an agreement accepted by the administering au- thority under subsection (b) or (c) shall be subject to a civil penalty assessed in the same amount, in the same manner, and under the same procedures, as the penalty imposed for a fraudulent violation of section 1592(a) of this title. (j) Determination not to take agreement into ac- count In making a final determination under section 1673d of this title, or in conducting a review under section 1675 of this title, in a case in which the administering authority has termi- nated a suspension of investigation under sub- section (i)(1), or continued an investigation under subsection (g), the Commission and the administering authority shall consider all of the subject merchandise without regard to the effect of any agreement under subsection (b) or (c). (k) Termination of investigation initiated by ad- ministering authority The administering authority may terminate any investigation initiated by the administering Page 360 TITLE 19—CUSTOMS DUTIES § 1673c authority under section 1673a(a) of this title after providing notice of such termination to all parties to the investigation. (l) Special rule for nonmarket economy countries (1) In general The administering authority may suspend an investigation under this part upon accept- ance of an agreement with a nonmarket econ- omy country to restrict the volume of imports into the United States of the merchandise under investigation only if the administering authority determines that— (A) such agreement satisfies the require- ments of subsection (d), and (B) will prevent the suppression or under- cutting of price levels of domestic products by imports of the merchandise under inves- tigation. (2) Failure of agreements If the administering authority determines that an agreement accepted under this sub- section no longer prevents the suppression or undercutting of domestic prices of merchan- dise manufactured in the United States, the provisions of subsection (i) shall apply. (m) Special rule for regional industry investiga- tions (1) Suspension agreements If the Commission makes a regional indus- try determination under section 1677(4)(C) of this title, the administering authority shall offer exporters of the subject merchandise who account for substantially all exports of that merchandise for sale in the region concerned the opportunity to enter into an agreement described in subsection (b), (c), or (l). (2) Requirements for suspension agreements Any agreement described in paragraph (1) shall be subject to all the requirements im- posed under this section for other agreements under subsection (b), (c), or (l), except that if the Commission makes a regional industry de- termination described in paragraph (1) in the final affirmative determination under section 1673d(b) of this title but not in the preliminary affirmative determination under section 1673b(a) of this title, any agreement described in paragraph (1) may be accepted within 60 days after the antidumping order is published under section 1673e of this title. (3) Effect of suspension agreement on anti- dumping duty order If an agreement described in paragraph (1) is accepted after the antidumping duty order is published, the administering authority shall rescind the order, refund any cash deposit and release any bond or other security deposited under section 1673b(d)(1)(B) of this title, and instruct the Customs Service that entries of the subject merchandise that were made dur- ing the period that the order was in effect shall be liquidated without regard to anti- dumping duties. (June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title VII, § 734, as added Pub. L. 96–39, title I, § 101, July 26, 1979, 93 Stat. 165; amended Pub. L. 98–573, title VI, §§ 604(b), 612(b)(2), Oct. 30, 1984, 98 Stat. 3026, 3034; Pub. L. 100–418, title I, §§ 1316(c), 1326(d)(2), Aug. 23, 1988, 102 Stat. 1187, 1204; Pub. L. 103–465, title II, §§ 216(b), 217(b), 218(a)(2), 219(c)(2)–(5), 233(a)(1)(B), (2)(A)(ii), (5)(S)–(U), Dec. 8, 1994, 108 Stat. 4853, 4854, 4857, 4898, 4900; Pub. L. 114–125, title VIII, § 802(d)(2), Feb. 24, 2016, 130 Stat. 210.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1994—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 103–465, § 217(b), des- ignated existing provisions as subpar. (A), inserted heading and realigned margin, and added subpar. (B). Subsec. (a)(2)(A). Pub. L. 103–465, § 233(a)(5)(S), sub- stituted ‘‘subject merchandise’’ for ‘‘merchandise that is subject to the investigation’’. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 103–465, § 233(a)(5)(T), substituted ‘‘subject merchandise’’ for ‘‘merchandise which is the subject of the investigation’’ in introductory provi- sions. Subsec. (b)(2). Pub. L. 103–465, § 233(a)(1)(B), (2)(A)(ii), substituted ‘‘normal value’’ for ‘‘foreign market value’’ and ‘‘export price (or the constructed export price)’’ for ‘‘United States price’’. Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 103–465, § 233(a)(5)(T), sub- stituted ‘‘subject merchandise’’ for ‘‘merchandise which is the subject of the investigation’’ in introduc- tory provisions. Subsec. (c)(1)(B). Pub. L. 103–465, § 233(a)(1)(B), (2)(A)(ii), substituted ‘‘normal value’’ for ‘‘foreign mar- ket value’’ in two places and ‘‘export price (or the con- structed export price)’’ for ‘‘United States price’’ in two places. Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 103–465, § 216(b), inserted con- cluding provisions. Subsec. (f)(1)(A). Pub. L. 103–465, § 233(a)(5)(T), sub- stituted ‘‘subject merchandise’’ for ‘‘merchandise which is the subject of the investigation’’. Subsec. (f)(2)(A)(i). Pub. L. 103–465, §§ 219(c)(2)(A), 233(a)(5)(T), substituted ‘‘subject merchandise’’ for ‘‘merchandise which is the subject of the investiga- tion’’ and ‘‘1673b(d)(2)’’ for ‘‘1673b(d)(1)’’. Subsec. (f)(2)(A)(iii). Pub. L. 103–465, § 219(c)(2)(B), sub- stituted ‘‘1673b(d)(1)(B)’’ for ‘‘1673b(d)(2)’’. Subsec. (f)(2)(B). Pub. L. 103–465, §§ 219(c)(3), 233(a)(5)(U), substituted ‘‘subject merchandise’’ for ‘‘merchandise subject to the investigation’’, ‘‘1673b(d)(2)’’ for ‘‘1673b(d)(1)’’, and ‘‘1673b(d)(1)(B)’’ for ‘‘1673b(d)(2)’’. Subsecs. (g)(1), (h)(2). Pub. L. 103–465, § 233(a)(5)(T), substituted ‘‘subject merchandise’’ for ‘‘merchandise which is the subject of the investigation’’. Subsec. (h)(3). Pub. L. 103–465, §§ 219(c)(4), 233(a)(5)(T), in introductory provisions, substituted ‘‘subject mer- chandise’’ for ‘‘merchandise which is the subject of the investigation’’, in subpar. (A), substituted ‘‘1673b(d)(2)’’ for ‘‘1673b(d)(1)’’, and in subpar. (B), substituted ‘‘1673b(d)(1)(B)’’ for ‘‘1673b(d)(2)’’. Subsec. (i)(1)(A). Pub. L. 103–465, § 219(c)(5), sub- stituted ‘‘1673b(d)(2)’’ for ‘‘1673b(d)(1)’’ in introductory provisions. Subsec. (j). Pub. L. 103–465, § 233(a)(5)(T), substituted ‘‘subject merchandise’’ for ‘‘merchandise which is the subject of the investigation’’. Subsec. (m). Pub. L. 103–465, § 218(a)(2), added subsec. (m). 1988—Subsecs. (g)(2), (h)(1). Pub. L. 100–418, § 1326(d)(2), substituted ‘‘(F), or (G)’’ for ‘‘and (F)’’. Subsec. (l). Pub. L. 100–418, § 1316(c), added subsec. (l). 1984—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 98–573, § 604(b)(1), amended subsec. (a) generally, which prior to amendment read as follows: ‘‘An investigation under this part may be ter- minated by either the administering authority or the Commission after notice to all parties to the investiga- tion, upon withdrawal of the petition by the petitioner. The Commission may not terminate an investigation under the preceding sentence before a preliminary de- termination is made by the administering authority under section 1673b(b) of this title.’’ Page 361 TITLE 19—CUSTOMS DUTIES § 1673d Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 98–573, § 604(b)(2), struck out des- ignation ‘‘(1)’’ preceding first sentence, substituted ‘‘may not accept’’ for ‘‘shall not accept’’, redesignated former subpars. (A) and (B) as pars. (1) and (2), respec- tively, and struck out former par. (2), which had pro- vided that exports of merchandise to the United States were not to increase during the interim period. Subsec. (e)(3). Pub. L. 98–573, § 604(b)(3), substituted ‘‘all interested parties described in section 1677(9) of this title’’ for ‘‘all parties to the investigation’’. Subsecs. (g)(2), (h)(1). Pub. L. 98–573, § 612(b)(2), sub- stituted reference to subpar. ‘‘(C), (D), (E), and (F)’’ for ‘‘(C), (D), or (E)’’ of section 1677(9) of this title. Subsec. (i)(1)(D), (E). Pub. L. 98–573, § 604(b)(4), added subpar. (D) and redesignated former subpar. (D) as (E). Subsec. (k). Pub. L. 98–573, § 604(b)(5), added subsec. (k). Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries CHANGE OF NAME ‘‘Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protec- tion’’ substituted for ‘‘Commissioner of Customs’’ in subsec. (i)(1)(D) on authority of section 802(d)(2) of Pub. L. 114–125, set out as a note under section 211 of Title 6, Domestic Security. EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1994 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 103–465 effective, except as otherwise provided, on the date on which the WTO Agreement enters into force with respect to the United States (Jan. 1, 1995), and applicable with respect to in- vestigations, reviews, and inquiries initiated and peti- tions filed under specified provisions of this chapter after such date, see section 291 of Pub. L. 103–465, set out as a note under section 1671 of this title. EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1988 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 100–418 applicable with re- spect to investigations initiated after Aug. 23, 1988, and to reviews initiated under section 1673e(c) or 1675 of this title after Aug. 23, 1988, see section 1337(b) of Pub. L. 100–418, set out as a note under section 1671 of this title. EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1984 AMENDMENT Amendment by section 604(b) of Pub. L. 98–573 effec- tive Oct. 30, 1984, and amendment by section 612(b)(2) of Pub. L. 98–573 applicable with respect to investigations initiated by petition or by the administering authority under parts I and II of this subtitle, and to reviews begun under section 1675 of this title, on or after Oct. 30, 1984, see section 626(a), (b)(1) of Pub. L. 98–573, as amended, set out as a note under section 1671 of this title. TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS For transfer of functions, personnel, assets, and li- abilities of the United States Customs Service of the Department of the Treasury, including functions of the Secretary of the Treasury relating thereto, to the Sec- retary of Homeland Security, and for treatment of re- lated references, see sections 203(1), 551(d), 552(d), and 557 of Title 6, Domestic Security, and the Department of Homeland Security Reorganization Plan of Novem- ber 25, 2002, as modified, set out as a note under section 542 of Title 6. For establishment of U.S. Customs and Border Protection in the Department of Homeland Se- curity, treated as if included in Pub. L. 107–296 as of Nov. 25, 2002, see section 211 of Title 6, as amended gen- erally by Pub. L. 114–125, and section 802(b) of Pub. L. 114–125, set out as a note under section 211 of Title 6. § 1673d. Final determinations (a) Final determination by administering author- ity (1) General rule Within 75 days after the date of its prelimi- nary determination under section 1673b(b) of this title, the administering authority shall make a final determination of whether the subject merchandise is being, or is likely to be, sold in the United States at less than its fair value. (2) Extension of period for determination The administering authority may postpone making the final determination under para- graph (1) until not later than the 135th day after the date on which it published notice of its preliminary determination under section 1673b(b) of this title if a request in writing for such a postponement is made by— (A) exporters who account for a significant proportion of exports of the merchandise which is the subject of the investigation, in a proceeding in which the preliminary deter- mination by the administering authority under section 1673b(b) of this title was af- firmative, or (B) the petitioner, in a proceeding in which the preliminary determination by the ad- ministering authority under section 1673b(b) of this title was negative. (3) Critical circumstances determinations If the final determination of the admin- istering authority is affirmative, then that de- termination, in any investigation in which the presence of critical circumstances has been al- leged under section 1673b(e) of this title, shall also contain a finding of whether— (A)(i) there is a history of dumping and material injury by reason of dumped imports in the United States or elsewhere of the sub- ject merchandise, or (ii) the person by whom, or for whose ac- count, the merchandise was imported knew or should have known that the exporter was selling the subject merchandise at less than its fair value and that there would be mate- rial injury by reason of such sales, and (B) there have been massive imports of the subject merchandise over a relatively short period. Such findings may be affirmative even though the preliminary determination under section 1673b(e)(1) of this title was negative. (4) De minimis dumping margin In making a determination under this sub- section, the administering authority shall dis- regard any weighted average dumping margin that is de minimis as defined in section 1673b(b)(3) of this title. (b) Final determination by Commission (1) In general The Commission shall make a final deter- mination of whether— (A) an industry in the United States— (i) is materially injured, or (ii) is threatened with material injury, or (B) the establishment of an industry in the United States is materially retarded, by reason of imports, or sales (or the likeli- hood of sales) for importation, of the merchan- dise with respect to which the administering authority has made an affirmative determina-