STATE TRADING
NEW AND FULL NOTIFICATION PURSUANT TO ARTICLE
XVII:4(A) OF
THE GATT 1994 AND PARAGRAPH 1 OF THE UNDERSTANDING ON
THE INTERPRETATION OF ARTICLE XVII
Malaysia
The following communication, dated and
received on 18 November 2024, is being circulated at the request of the
delegation of Malaysia.
_______________
I am pleased
to submit herewith Malaysia's notification pursuant to Article XVII:4(a) of the
GATT 1994 and paragraph 1 of the Understanding on the Interpretation of
Article XVII, for the years 2020-2021 and 2022-2023, in response to the
calls for notification contained in documents _G/STR/N/19
and _G/STR/N/20.
1 ENUMERATION
OF STATE TRADING ENTERPRISES
A._
Identification of state trading
enterprise.
Padiberas
Nasional Berhad (BERNAS).
B._
Description of products
affected (including tariff item number(s) encompassed in product description).
Rice (HS
10.06).
2 REASON
AND PURPOSE
A._
Reason or purpose for establishing
and/or maintaining state trading enterprise.
Padiberas
Nasional Berhad (BERNAS) acts as a State Trading Enterprise for rice
importation. It performs commercial and non-commercial activities on
behalf of the Government of Malaysia.
B._
Summary of legal basis
for granting the relevant exclusive or special rights or privileges, including
legal provisions and summary of statutory or constitutional powers.
The National
Paddy and Rice Board (hereinafter referred to as NPRB) was corporatised on 7 July 1994
and subsequently privatised on 12 January 1996. Following this corporatization
exercise, the Board was dissolved and all its regulatory functions and
activities were transferred to the Ministry of Agriculture. BERNAS
was then created as a public limited company limited by shares registered under
the Companies Act 1965 to carry out the relevant function for the Government in
addition to its own commercial activities. The Government of Malaysia via the
Ministry of Finance (MOF) Incorporated holds one Special Right Redeemable
Preference Share in BERNAS.
3 DESCRIPTION
OF THE FUNCTIONING OF THE STATE TRADING ENTERPRISE
A._
Summary statement
providing overview of operations of the state trading enterprise.
BERNAS carries
out non-commercial activities on behalf of the Government including managing
the natural disaster fund for paddy farmers and acting as a buyer of last
resort for the paddy farmers. BERNAS also engages in commercial activities such
as paddy seed production, farming, procurement and rice processing; as well as
the importation, distribution of rice and its by-products.
B._
Specification of
exclusive or special rights or privileges enjoyed by the state trading
enterprise.
None.
C._
Type of entities other
than the state trading enterprise that are allowed to engage in
importation/exportation and conditions for participation.
None.
D._
How import/export levels
are established by the state trading enterprise.
The country's
annual rice import is determined by non-commercial considerations and
explicitly caters to offset the deficits in local production and stockpile
requirements for food security, both of which are determined by the government.
E._
How export prices are
determined.
BERNAS is not involved
in the export of rice.
F._
How the resale prices of
imported products are determined.
The pricing strategy
adopted by BERNAS is determined by quality and target markets as stipulated under
the Rice Order (Control of Grades and Prices) 1992. Rice marketed in Malaysia
is classified according to three major grades, i.e. super, premium and
standard. Imported rice falls under the super grade as preferred by the consumers.
The imported super grade rice does not have a ceiling price and price levels
are determined by the market.
G._
Whether long-term
contracts are negotiated by the state trading enterprise. Whether the state
trading enterprise is used to fulfil contractual obligations entered into by
the government.
No. BERNAS only
buys rice on the spot or short-term contracts depending on the international
market and supply conditions.
H._
Brief description of
market structure.
It's an open
market.
4 STATISTICAL
INFORMATION (SEE ATTACHED TABLES I - III)
5 REASON
WHY NO FOREIGN TRADE HAS TAKEN PLACE (AS APPROPRIATE)
Malaysia is a
net importer of rice.
6 ADDITIONAL
INFORMATION (AS APPROPRIATE)
TABLE I
STATE TRADING:
PADIBERAS NASIONAL BERHAD (BERNAS)
STATISTICAL INFORMATION, IMPORTS
|
Description of product(s)
(including HS number(s))
|
Total quantity imported1
('000 MT)
|
Quantity imported by state
trading enterprise1
|
Average import price
(MYR/MT)
|
Average representative domestic
sales price3 (MYR/MT)
|
Mark-up2
|
National production ('000 MT)
|
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
5
|
6
|
7
|
|
RICE (HS 10.06)
|
|
2020
|
Not Applicable
|
1,110
|
2,632
|
2,100 – 2,800
|
Not Applicable
|
1,817
|
|
2021
|
Not Applicable
|
1,062
|
2,594
|
2,600 – 2,800
|
Not Applicable
|
1,767
|
|
2022
|
Not Applicable
|
1,113
|
3,013
|
2,600 – 3,400
|
Not Applicable
|
1,576
|
|
2023
|
Not
Applicable
|
1,282
|
3,399
|
2,600 – 3,400
|
Not
Applicable
|
1,445
|
1 All rice are
imported through STE (BERNAS).
2 Members may report either under columns 4 and 5
or under column 6.
3 Denotes the typical rice prices sold in the retail
market, quality of those rice ranges from good to acceptable.
The average exchange rate for 1 USD
to MYR
-_
2020: MYR 4.3502
-_
2021: MYR 4.1359
-_
2022: MYR 4.4359
-_
2023: MYR 4.5712
TABLE II
STATE TRADING:
PADIBERAS NASIONAL BERHAD (BERNAS)
STATISTICAL
INFORMATION, EXPORTS
|
Description of product(s)
(including HS number(s))
|
Total quantity exported1
|
Quantity exported by state
trading enterprise1
|
Average procurement price2
|
Average representative domestic
sales price
|
Average export price
|
National production
|
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
5
|
6
|
7
|
|
Not Applicable
|
Not Applicable
|
Not Applicable
|
Not Applicable
|
Not Applicable
|
Not Applicable
|
Not Applicable
|
1 In cases
where no exports
have taken place under columns 2 or 3, provide an explanation under Section V of this questionnaire.
2 In cases where the initial procurement price is augmented by other payments, additional payments should also be reported.
TABLE III
STATE TRADING:
PADIBERAS NASIONAL BERHAD (BERNAS)
STATISTICAL
INFORMATION, DOMESTIC ACTIVITIES
|
Description of
product(s) (including HS number(s))
|
Domestic
purchases by state trading enterprise ('000 MT)
|
National
production
('000 MT)
|
Domestic sales
by state trading enterprise
('000 MT)
|
National
consumption
('000 MT)
|
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
5
|
|
RICE (HS
10.06)
|
|
2020
|
448
|
1,817
|
1,191
|
2,654
|
|
2021
|
449
|
1,767
|
1,087
|
2,583
|
|
2022
|
339
|
1,576
|
1,094
|
2,599
|
|
2023
|
258
|
1,445
|
1,379
|
2,615
|
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