NOTIFICATION UNDER ARTICLE 12.1(A) OF THE
AGREEMENT ON SAFEGUARDS ON INITIATION OF AN INVESTIGATION AND THE REASONS FOR
IT
Morocco
(Coated wood fibreboard)
The following communication, dated and
received on 20 February 2024, is being circulated at the request of the
delegation of Morocco.
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Pursuant to
Article 12.1(a) of the Agreement on Safeguards, Morocco hereby notifies the
initiation of a safeguard investigation concerning imports of coated wood fibreboard.
1. Date when the
investigation was initiated
The Ministry
of Industry and Trade (hereinafter the Ministry) has decided to initiate a
safeguard investigation concerning imports of coated wood fibreboard, as from
20 February 2024.
A notice
concerning the initiation of the investigation is available to the public on
the Ministry's website: https://www.mcinet.gov.ma/fr/avis-sauvegarde.
2. Precise description of the
product involved
The product at
issue is board made from wood fibres and surface coated with melamine decor
paper or decorative laminates of plastic.
The product
referred to in the petition is currently imported into Morocco under the
following Harmonized System tariff headings of the Moroccan customs tariff:
4411.12.00.90,
4411.13.00.90, 4411.14.00.90, 4411.92.00.90, 4411.93.00.90 and 4411.94.00.90.
3. Reasons for the initiation
of the investigation
The
investigation was initiated by the Ministry following a petition submitted by
the company Cema Bois de l'Atlas, on behalf of the domestic
industry producing coated wood particle board, which, within the scope of this
investigation, is considered to be the product in direct competition with the
product at issue.
According to
the petition, the product in question has been imported into the Moroccan
market in such increased quantities, both in absolute terms and in relation to
domestic production, as to threaten to cause serious injury to the domestic
industry producing coated wood particle board.
Imports of
coated wood fibreboard recorded a sharp rise during the period 2019-2023, both
in absolute terms and in relation to domestic production.
In absolute
terms, these imports increased by 370% over the period 2019‑2023. In relation
to domestic production, they increased by more than 641% during the period 2019‑2023.
According to
the petitioner, this massive increase in imports is due to a number of
unforeseen developments.
According to
the claims made in the petition, the increase in imports threatens to cause
imminent serious injury to the domestic industry producing coated wood particle
board.
4. Procedures and deadlines
for interested parties to make themselves known
Interested
parties have a period of 30 days from the date of initiation of the
investigation to make themselves known as such and to comment on the
investigation, by contacting the Ministry by fax or email at the number or
address provided in paragraph 5.
During the
investigation, the Ministry will be open to hearing the arguments of the
various parties. Any request for a hearing must be made in writing, be duly
motivated and contain the elements that the interested party wishes to address.
5. Point of contact and
correspondence for the purposes of the investigation
To request
information about the investigation procedure, parties should contact the
Ministry using the fax number or email address provided below:
Ministère de
l'Industrie et du Commerce
Direction Générale du
Commerce
Direction de la
Défense et de la Réglementation Commerciale
Division de la Défense
Commerciale
Parcelle 14, Business center, aile Nord bd
Riad,
Hay
Riad. BP 610, Rabat Chellah, Morocco
Tel.:
(+212) 537 70 18 46
Fax: (+212) 537 72 71 50
Email: DDC-SVG-MDF@mcinet.gov.ma
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