1 Trade remedies as barriers: Implication for SAARC countries Abhijit Das Senior Trade Officer UNCTAD India Programme Organised by Teri, 3 May, 2006 UNCTAD

2 Who are the users of trade remedies in SAARC ? India is the user of trade remedies in SAARC It imposed anti-dumping duty on 3 products from SAARC countries ProductCountryDate of initiationImposition of final duty Acrylic yarnNepal3 January July 2002 Lead acid batteries Bangladesh12 January December 2001 Zinc OxideNepal19 March March 2002

3 Impact of anti-dumping duty acrylic yarn imports from Nepal Total Acrylic yarn imports from Nepal Year Import from Nepal in US$ Million Total Import of commodity %Share of Nepal

4 Impact of anti-dumping duty Lead acid batteries imports from Bangladesh Year Import from B’desh in US$ Million Total Import of commo dity %Share of B’desh

5 Impact of anti-dumping duty on Zinc Oxide imports from Nepal Year Import from Nepal in US$ Million Total Import of commodity %Share of Nepal

6 Anti-Dumping measures as trade barriers Trade chilling effect of initiation of anti- dumping investigation Significant reduction in absolute value of imports and import share Message is clear- initiation of anti-dumping investigation and imposition of duties can be significant barriers to trade

7 Anti-Dumping: LDCs provision in SAFTA Give special regard to the situation of the Least Developed Contracting States when considering the application of anti- dumping and/or countervailing measures Provide an opportunity to Least Developed Contracting States for consultations Shall, to the extent practical, favourably consider accepting price undertakings

8 SAFTA LDCs provision: Is it beneficial LDCs provision is an improvement on Art. 15 of the ADA Possibility of country-to-country consultations Although non-mandatory in nature, favourable consideration of price undertakings would be a positive step Whether SAARC LDCs are able to benefit from these provisions will depend on their level of preparation

9 Consultations: What preparations required Basic data on imports of the product under investigation – IBIS may be a useful source Did the petition contain adequate information justifying initiation of the investigation – on dumping, injury and causality Has the analysis of the 15 injury factors been done in accordance with the requirements of ADA? Documentation of why the investigation is flawed

10 Are non-LDCs without any remedy? As an interested party, govt. of the exporting country has a full opportunity for the defence of its interests throughout an anti-dumping investigation. Preparation similar to that suggested for LDCs applicable. Investigating authorities are mandatorily required to take due account of any difficulties experienced by interested parties in supplying information requested- need to effectively use this provision

11 SAFTA Safeguard provisions SAFTA safeguards can be imposed only on products subject to a concession under SAFTA SAFTA does not preclude SAARC countries from resorting to global safeguards under WTO. Requirement of investigation for imposition of SAFTA safeguards – investigation procedure to be consistent with requirements under Art XIX and Agreement on Safeguards

12 SAFTA Safeguards : How are these different from global safeguards SAFTA safeguards limited to products covered by concessions under SAFTA Maximum duration of application of SAFTA safeguards is 3 years as against 8/10 years under Agreement on Safeguards SAFTA has 5%/ 15% LDC exception as against 3%/ 9% developing country exception for global safeguards

13 SAFTA Safeguards: Ambiguities Can global safeguards and SAFTA safeguards be applied simultaneously on the same product What should be the period for determining the 5%/ 15% import share for LDC exception Can SAFTA safeguard measures be in a form other than temporary suspension of tariff concessions

14 Conclusions Although anti-dumping duties have acted as trade barriers in SAARC, effective utilisation of ADA/ SAFTA provisions could help redress some of the underlying problems. While SAFTA safeguard provisions may be LDC friendly, need for addressing ambiguities.

15 THANK YOU