G/SG/N/6/COL/4/Suppl.1  
G/SG/N/14/COL/1  
13 January 2015  
(15-0212)  Page: 1/3  
Committee on Safeguards  Original: Spanish  
 
  NOTIFICATION UNDER ARTICLE 12.1(A) OF THE AGREEMENT ON SAFEGUARDS 
ON INITIATION OF AN INVESTIGATION AND THE REASONS FOR IT 
NOTIFICATION OF THE INITIATION OF A REVIEW PURSUANT TO ARTICLE 7.2 
REGARDING THE EXTENSION OF A SAFEGUARD MEASURE 
COLOMBIA  
(Bars and Rods of Low-Carbon Steel) 
The following communication, dated 12 January 2015, is being circulated at the request of the 
delegation of Colombia.  
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 Pursuant to Article 7.2 of the WTO Agreement on Safeguards, Colombia hereby notifies the 
initiation of an investigation to consider the extension of the general safeguard measure adopted 
by Decree 846 of 30 April 2014 in accordance with the regulations established in its domestic legislation - Decree 152 of 1998. 
 
1. Date when the investigation was initiated 
The investigation was initiated on 17 December 2014 under Initiating Resolution ( Resolución de 
Apertura ) No. 279 of 17 December 2014, published in Colombian Official Journal No. 49.369 of 
18 December 2014.
1 
 2. Precise description of the product involved 
The product under investigation is bars and rods of low-carbon steel, commercially known 
as "Alambrón Trefilable de Bajo Carbono " (low-carbon drawable wire rod), which is classified in the 
National Customs Tariff (Decree 4927 of 2011) under the following tariff subheadings: 
 
PRODUCT SUBHEADING DESCRIPTION 
Bars and rods 
of low-carbon steel 7213.91.10.10 Other bars and rods, hot-rolled, in irregularly wound coils, of iron or 
non-alloyed steel, of a circular cross-section measuring less than 14mm, containing by weight less than 0.12% of chromium, nickel, copper and molybdenum taken together, and less than 0.45% of carbon. 
7213.91.90.10 Other bars and rods, hot-rolled, in irregularly wound coils, of iron or 
non-alloy steel, of a circular cross-section measuring less than 14mm in diameter, containing by weight  less than 0. 45% of carbon. 
7227.90.00.11 Other bars and rods, hot-rolled, in irregularly wound coils, of boron alloy 
steel, containing by weight less than 0.45% of carbon. 
 
                                               
1 http://www.imprenta.gov.co/diariop/diario2.pdf?v_numero=49.369&v_desde=18-12-
2014&v_hasta=22-12-2014&p_inicial=1&p_final=10  and 
http://www.mincit.gov.co/publicaciones.php?id=32207  G/SG/N/6/COL/4/Suppl.1 • G/SG/N/14/COL/1 
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  3. WTO document containing the most recent Article 12.1(c) notification 
The adoption of a definitive safeguard measure on imports of low-carbon steel 
wire rod was notified in document G/SG/N/8/COL/1/Suppl.2-G/SG/N/10/COL/1/Suppl.1-G/SG/N/11/COL/1/Suppl.4. 
 
4. Reasons for the initiation of the review 
i. Request 
The request for the extension of the safeguard measure was submitted by the company ACERÍAS 
PAZ DEL RÍO S.A., which accounts for 79.75% of the domestic production of bars and rods, hot-rolled, of iron or non-alloy steel and other bars and rods, hot-rolled, of alloy steel containing by weight less than 0.45% of carbon, classifi ed under subheadings 7213.91.10.10, 7213.91.90.10, 
and 7227.90.00.11. 
 ii. Evidence on the basis of which the investigation was initiated 
 Analysis of imports 
The behaviour of total imports during 2012 and the first half of 2013 shall be taken as the 
historical reference, while the second half of 2013 and the first half of 2014 shall be considered as 
the most recent or critical period in which imports have increased in such quantities and under 
such conditions as to cause or threaten to cause injury to the domestic industry.  Between the reference period and the critical period, imports rose by 1.1% from 103,008 tonnes 
to 104,162 tonnes, an increase of 1,154 tonnes. 
 The six-monthly analysis shows steady growth during the first three six-month periods examined, 
particularly the first half of 2013, when imports reached their highest level for any of the periods 
analysed, at 116,056 tonnes. In the second half of 2013 and the first half of 2014, the volume of imports started to decrease, by 4.92% and 11.21% respectively. 
 Analysis of injury indicators 
In order to analyse the impact that the imports ha d on the domestic industry in the second half 
of 2013 and the first half of 2014 (critical period), the average for these periods was compared with the average for the first and second halves  of 2012 and the first half of 2013 (reference 
period). 
 The comparison of the reference period with the crit ical period revealed serious injury in the poor 
performance of the domestic industry in respect of the following variables: operating profits, 
operating profit margin, final finished product inventory, final domestic sales inventory, final inventory of production volume for the domestic market, and implicit real price. 
 
On the other hand, no serious injury was found in the behaviour of the following variables: volume 
of production in relation to domestic market, volume of production in relation to domestic sales, volume of production in respect of apparent domestic consumption, volume of domestic sales, 
gross profit, gross profit margin, total imports over the volume of production of the domestic 
market, installed capacity utilization in relation to national domestic production, productivity over domestic market production, real monthly wages per worker, direct employment, volume of sales 
of the applicant over apparent domestic consumptio n, volume of sales of the other producers over 
apparent domestic consumption, and total imports over apparent domestic consumption.  
However, the improvement in the economic and financial indicators of the domestic industry was 
influenced by the introduction of the provisional safeguard by Decree 2213 of 8 October 2013 for six tariff subheadings, which were narrowed to  three following the differentiation introduced 
under Decree 332 of 19 February 2014 involving a sub-division into three new subheadings, 
as well as the definitive safeguard measure introduced by Decree 846 of 30 April 2014 for 
one year, in the form of an annual import quota of 174,452 tonnes.  G/SG/N/6/COL/4/Suppl.1 • G/SG/N/14/COL/1 
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  5. Deadlines for exporters and other interest ed parties to submit comments in writing 
or in a hearing, if any  
On 19 December 2014, the Foreign Trade Directorate of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and 
Tourism, via the national newspapers El Nuevo Siglo and La República, invited the parties 
concerned by the investigation to express their du ly substantiated views and to submit or request 
any evidence and documents that they consider rele vant within thirty (30) working days from the 
first working day following the date of publication of the invitation. 
 
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