Anti-dumping/Countervailing Measures

General/Special Safeguard Measures

WTO Anti-Dumping Agreement (GATT Article VI)
WTO Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures ( GATT Article XVI)

WTO Agreement on Safeguards (GATT Article XIX)
WTO Agreement on Agriculture

Address unfairly traded imports:

Address fairly traded imports:

   - Export price is lower than the normal value

   - Subsidized production or exportation of the foreign merchandise

   - Export price at the level of normal value

   - Increased level of imports absolute or relative to production    (general safeguards)

   - Volume of imports exceed a base trigger level or price falls below a trigger price level

  (special safeguards)

   - Limited to “like” products

   - Country specific and exporter specific

   - All "like" or "directly competitive" products

   - All countries exporting "like" or directly "competitive product."

   - General safeguards apply to industrial and non-tariffied goods

 - Special safeguards apply to tariffied agricultural products denominated with the acronym “SSG” in the GATT Schedule of Concessions

   A domestic Industry which is supported by domestic producers whose collective output constitutes more than 50% of the total production of the like product produced by other domestic producers that are expressing either support for or opposition to the application. However, no investigation shall be initiated when domestic producers expressly supporting the application account for less than 25% of the production of the like product produced by the domestic industry.

   - Industry filing the case should be a producer of the like or directly competitive product whose collective output constitutes a major proportion of the total domestic production – general safeguards

   - Department of Agriculture (motu proprio) – special safeguards

   - Dumping/countervailing duty seeks to provide a remedy to level the playing field.

   - To protect the domestic industries against the unfair trade practices of dumping and/ or subsidization.

   - General safeguards will remove injury and facilitate structural adjustments for the industry to be competitive.

   - Special safeguards will assist farmers whose products were previously protected by quantitative restrictions (QR’s) that have been tariffied.

   - Product comparability ("like" product)

   - Price difference/subsidy

   - Material injury or threat of material injury

   - Causal link

   General Safeguards:

 - Product comparability (‘like” or “directly competitive” product)

 - Increased imports

 - Serious injury or threat of serious injury

 - Causal link

   Special Safeguards:

 - Product comparability ("like product")

 - Volume of imports exceed a base trigger level, or

 - Price falls below a trigger price level

1. Provisional measure – dumping/countervailing bond
2. Definitive anti-dumping/countervailing duty

   General Safeguards:

 1. Provisional measure – tariff increase

 2. Definitive safeguard measure:

        - tariff increase

   - quantitative restrictions (e.g., import quota; import licensing)

   Special Safeguards:

 1. Additional duty not exceeding one-third of the level of the ordinary customs duty in effect during the year in which the action is taken.

   Requires the conduct of a preliminary investigation (affirmative preliminary determination) prior to imposition of a dumping or countervailing bond for a duration of four (4) months or 120 days.

   General Safeguards:

 - In critical circumstances where delay may cause damage that is difficult to repair, safeguard measure in the form of tariff adjustment may be imposed for 200 days pursuant to a preliminary determination.

   Special Safeguards:

 - Not provisionally applied.

   Five (5) years, subject to sunset review to determine whether or not to extend the effectivity of the dumping/ countervailing duty

   General Safeguards:

 - Four (4) years, extendable for another 4 years provided the industry can show that structural adjustment is being implemented with an extension for another two (2) years for developing countries.

   Special Safeguards:

 - Shall only be maintained until the end of the year in which it has been imposed.