G/SG/N/10/MAR/6/Suppl.1  
G/SG/N/11/MAR/6/Suppl.1  
16 August  2022 
(22-6236) Page: 1/4 
Committee on Safeguards  Original:  French  
 
  
NOTIFICATION UNDER ARTICLE 12.1(C)  
OF THE AGREEMENT ON SAFEGUARDS  
(EXTENSION OF THE EXISTING MEASURE)  
NOTIFICATION PURSUANT TO ARTICLE 9, FOOTNOTE 2,  
OF THE AGREEMENT ON SAFEGUARDS  
MOROCCO  
Coated wood board  
Supplement  
The following communication, dated and received on 1 5 August 2 022, is being circulated at the 
request of the delegation of Morocco.  
 
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Pursuant to Article 12.1(c) of the Agreement on Safeguards, Morocco hereby notifies the extension 
of the safe guard measure on imports of coated wood board.  
1  DESCRIPTION OF THE PRODUCT SUBJECT TO THE SAFEGUARD MEASURE  
The product subject to the review investigation is board made from pieces of wood 
agglomerated  with a binding substance, other than oriented strand board (OSB) and waferboard, 
which is surface -covered with melamine decor paper or decorative laminates of plastic, hereinafter 
referred to as "coated wood board" . This product is imported under the following tariff headings and 
subheadings of Morocc o's Harmonized System : 4410.11.20.90,  4410.11.30.90,  4410.19.92.90  
and 4410.19.93.90.  
2  DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPOSED MEASURE  
The safeguard measure consists of an additional specific duty of MAD 1 .6/kg applicable to coated 
wood board exceeding a quota of 33,00 0 tonnes.  
3  PROPOSED DATE OF INTRODUCTION OF THE MEASURE  
The definitive safeguard measure will be published in the Official Journal of Morocco . Its provisions 
will enter into force on 2 0 September  2022. 
4  EXPECTED DURATION OF THE MEASURE  
The Moroccan Ministry of Industry and Trade (the Ministry) plans to renew the safeguard measure 
for an additional duration of three years, i.e. until 1 9 September  2025. 
 G/SG/N/10/MAR/6/Suppl.1 • G/SG/N/11/MAR/6/Suppl.1  
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  5  EXPECTED TIMETABLE FOR PROGRESSIVE LIBERALIZATION OF THE MEASURE  
The level of the quota for coated wood board will continue to increase by 3 % each year to meet the 
liberalization requirement, in accordance with Article  65 of Law No. 15-09 on trade defence measures 
and Article  7.4 of the WTO Agreement on Safeguards.  
Table 1 : Annual quota levels for coated woo d board  
(In tonnes)  
Safeguard measure periods  Annual quota  
From 2 0 September 2 022 to 1 9 September 2 023 33,000  
From 2 0 September 2 023 to 1 9 September 2 024 33,990  
From 2 0 September 2 024 to 1 9 September 2 025 35,009.7  
 
6  EVIDENCE THAT THE SAFEGUARD MEASURE CONTINUES TO BE NECESSARY TO REMEDY 
OR PREVENT SERIOUS INJURY AND THAT THE INDUSTRY CONCERNED IS ADJUSTING  
In order to determine whether the safeguard measure continues to be necessary to remedy or 
prevent serious injury and whether the Moroccan in dustry is adjusting in accordance with Article  69 
of Law No. 15-09 and Article 7.2 of the WTO Agreement on Safeguards, the Ministry examined 
whether the safeguard measure was still needed to remedy serious injury . In this connection, it 
examined import tre nds for coated wood board , and the Moroccan industry's economic and financial 
indicators . The Ministry then examined whether the safeguard measure continued to be necessary 
to prevent serious injury . The examination focused, for that purpose, on the forese eable and 
imminent behaviour of the imports and their effects on the Moroccan coated wood board industry 
after the lifting of the safeguard measure . The Ministry also examined this industry's restructuring 
programme.  
6.1  Determination as to whether the safegua rd measure continues to be necessary to 
remedy serious injury  
In order to determine whether the safeguard measure continues to be necessary to remedy serious 
injury, the Ministry examined the domestic industry's economic and financial indicators, namely 
production, production capacity, rate of capacity utilization, sales, production costs, profitability, 
inventories, productivity and employment . An improvement in the situation of the Moroccan coated 
wood board industry was observed, but it remains very frag ile. G/SG/N/10/MAR/6/Suppl.1 • G/SG/N/11/MAR/6/Suppl.1  
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  Table 2 : Overview of indicators of serious injury suffered by the domestic coated wood 
board industry  
(Index : 2018=100)  2018  2019  2020  2021  
Imports (m²)  4,831,923  5,406,332  3,745,970  3,555,782  
Production (m²)  100 112 134 177 
Imports/Production  100 100 58 42 
Domestic sales (m²)  100 99 134 169 
Market share of domestic industry  100 92 143 167 
Market share of imports  100 104 83 73 
Domestic selling price (MAD/m²)  100 106 105 117 
Profitability (MAD/m²)  (100)  (55) 33 66 
Inventor ies (m²)  100 123 112 114 
Production capacity  (m²)  100 174 174 174 
Production capacity utilization  
rate in (%) 100 64 77 102 
Investment (MAD)  100 3 3 5 
Employment (persons)  100 119 126 127 
Productivity (m²/employee)  100 94 107 139 
Source : Data compiled from Foreign Exchange Board statistics and results of a survey for domestic producers.  
6.2  Determination as to whether the safeguard measure continues to be necessary to 
prevent serious injury  
In order to determine whether the safeguard measure continues to be necessary to prevent serious 
injury, the Ministry examined the risk that imports would increase in the coming years due to factors 
such as the following:  
i. The attractiveness of the Moroccan market;  
ii. The a vailable productive capacity of the main exporting producers of coated wood 
board;  
iii. Exporters' low prices ; and 
iv. The collapse of the Turkish lira exchange rate.  
Having examined the above factors, Morocco concluded that there is a real and imminent risk of 
imports of coated wood board increasing once the safeguard measure is lifted.  
6.3  Determination as to whether the domestic industry engages in adjustment measures  
The Moroccan coated wood board industry has provided evidence showing that it has begun 
implementing its structural adju stment plan aimed at increasing its competitiveness . 
The implementation of adjustment measures is ongoing.  G/SG/N/10/MAR/6/Suppl.1 • G/SG/N/11/MAR/6/Suppl.1  
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  7  REFERENCE TO THE WTO DOCUMENT THAT NOTIFIED THE INITIAL APPLICATION OF 
THE MEASURE  
The WTO document containing the most recent Article 12.1(c) notifi cation is document 
G/SG/N/8/MAR/6/Corr.1  - G/SG/N/10/MAR/6/Corr.1  - G/SG/N/11/MAR/6/Corr.1, published on 
25 July 2019. 
8  THE DURATION OF THE MEASURE FROM INITIAL APPLICATION UNTIL THE DATE AT 
WHICH IT WILL BE EXTENDED  
Morocco applied a safeguard measure to i mports of coated wood board, which entered into force on 
20 September  2019 for a duration of three years until 1 9 September  2022. Morocco plans to extend 
this safeguard measure for three years, i.e. until 19  September  2025.  
9  DEVELOPING COUNTRIES EXCLUDED FR OM THE SAFEGUARD MEASURE UNDER 
ARTICLE  9.1 OF THE AGREEMENT ON SAFEGUARDS  
Afghanistan ; Albania ; Angola ; Antigua and Barbuda ; Argentina ; Armenia ; Kingdom of Bahrain ; 
Bangladesh ; Barbados ; Belize; Benin; Bolivia; Botswana ; Brazil; Brunei Darussalam ; Burkina Faso ; 
Burundi ; Cabo Verde ; Cambodia ; Cameroon ; Central African Republic ; Chad; Chile; China; 
Chinese  Taipei ; Colombia ; Congo; Costa Rica ; Côte d'Ivoire ; Cuba; Democratic Republic of the Congo ; 
Djibouti ; Dominica ; Dominican Republic ; Ecuador ; Egypt; El Salvador ; Eswatini ; Fiji; Gabon; Gambia ; 
Georgia ; Ghana; Grenada ; Guatemala ; Guinea ; Guinea -Bissau ; Guyana ; Haiti; Honduras ; 
Hong Kong,  China ; India; Indonesia ; Jamaica ; Jordan ; Kazakhstan ; Kenya; Republic of Korea ; Kuwait ; 
Kyrgyz Republic ; Lao People's Democratic Republic ; Lesotho ; Liberia ; Macao, China ; Madagascar ; 
Malawi; Malaysia ; Maldives ; Mali; Mauritania ; Mauritius ; Mexico; Republic of Moldova ; Mongolia ; 
Montenegro ; Mozambique ; Myanmar ; Namibia ; Nepal; Nicaragua ; Niger; Nigeria ; Oman; Pakistan; 
Panama ; Papua New Guinea ; Paraguay ; Peru; Philippines ; Qatar; Rwanda ; Saint Lucia; 
Saint Kitts and Nevis ; Saint Vincent and the Grenadines ; Samoa ; Kingdom of Saudi Arabia ; Senegal ; 
Seychelles ; Sierra Leone ; Singapore ; Solomon Islands ; South Africa ; Sri Lanka ; Suriname ; Tajikistan ; 
Tanzania ; Thailand ; the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia ; Togo; Tonga; Trinidad  and Tobago ; 
Tunisia ; Uganda ; United Arab Emirates ; Uruguay ; Vanuatu ; Bolivarian  Republic of Venezuela ; 
Viet Nam; Yemen ; Zambia ; Zimbabwe.  
10  OFFER OF CONSULTATIONS UNDER ARTICLE 12.3  
In accordance with Article  12.3 of the Agreement on Safeguards, Morocco is ready to consult on the 
proposed safeguard measure with those Members having a substantial interest as exporters of the 
products co ncerned.  
 
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