G/SG/N/8/ARE/3, G/SG/N/8/BHR/3  
G/SG/N/8/KWT/3, G/SG/N/8/OMN/3  
G/SG/N/8/QAT/3, G/SG/N/8/SAU/3  
 
23 July 2020  
(20-5104) Page: 1/4 
Committee on Safeguards  Original: English  
 
NOTIFICATION UNDER ARTICLE 12.1(B) OF THE AGREEMENT ON SAFEGUARDS  
ON FINDING A SERIOUS INJURY OR THREAT THEREOF  
CAUSED BY INCREASED IMPORTS  
COOPERATION COUNCIL FOR THE ARAB STATES OF THE GULF "GCC"  
Certain Steel Products  
The following communication, dated 23 July 2020, is being circulated at the request of the United 
Arab Emirates  on behalf of the GCC member States.  
 
_______________  
 
 
This document is the notification of Preliminary finding of serious injury or threat ther eof caused by 
increased imports Certain Steel Products. This is in reference to  document G/SG/N/6/ARE/3  - 
G/SG/N/6/BHR/4  - G/SG/N/6/KWT/4  - G/SG/N/6/OMN/3  - G/SG/N/6/QAT/3  - G/SG/N/6/SAU/3  
dated 24 October 20 19. 
1. Evidence of serious injury or threat  thereof caused by increased imports  
(a) Serious Injury : 
The investigation period covers 201 4 to the first half of  2019. 
The preliminary determination of serious injury analysis relates the evaluation of the overall position 
of the GCC industry , based on the collected data during the investigation , in light of all relevant 
factors having a bearing on the situation of that industry, which shows a significant ov erall 
impairment and thus it illustrates  that GCC industry has suffered serious injury and that the increase 
of GCC imports under investigation has caused serious injury to the GCC industry as follows:  
Index 201 4=100  
 2014  2015  2016  2017  2018  Jul 2018  
Jun 2019  
Production volume  100 97.12  94.16  85.54  93.92  70.21  
Capacity 
utilization  100 94.48  90.99  81.47  89.33  69.59  
Sales volume  100 102.17  100.16  92.60  93.18  75.39  
Market share of 
domestic sales  100 96.15  99.65  93.62  92.99  89.27  
Market share of 
imports  100 111.75  101.06  119.49  121.41  132.80  
Inventory volume  100 85.09  89.47  111.06  125.28  122.79  
Employment  100 104.84  107.52  101.41  103.67  100.03  
Losses  100 -166.56  -97.88  -96.48  19.70  -156.73  
Based on the period of investigation referred to above, the GCC-TSAIP  analyzed the rate and volume 
of the increase in imports and assessed the impact on GCC industry of  certain steel products  in the G/SG/N/8/ARE/3 • G/SG/N/8/BHR/3 • G/SG/N/8/KWT/3 • G/SG/N/8/OMN/3 • G/SG/N/8/QAT/3 • 
G/SG/N/8/SAU/3  
 
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  period 2014 to the first half of 2019.  According to the injury data above, there is a preliminarily 
sufficient evidence  that the GCC industry is suffering a serious injury in the form of decline in 
domestic sales, market share, production, employment, and increase in  inventory &  losses, in 
conjunction with the increase of imports.  
Therefore, the GCC -TSAIP  made a preliminary determination that the GCC industry is suffering 
serious injury during the period referred to above.  
(b) Threat  of serious injury  
The GCC-TSAIP , in order to determine  the threat of serious injury  and verify that it is clearly foreseen 
and immin ent, has analysed  the rate of increase of imports of products under investigation into GCC 
market, and the increase in export capacity of exporting countries in the world, and it was found 
that based on the mentioned below unforeseen developments , the surp lus of global production 
capacity in addition to the trade policies adopted by many countries in  the world may lead to the 
transfer of global exports to the GCC market, which indicates the likelihood of substantially  increased 
imports and exposes the GCC industry to a further deterioration of its financial and economic 
situation  in the future, As the GCC market remains an attractive market for foreign 
exporters/producers in the absence of availability of other export markets to  absorb a dditional 
exports in the World , the majority of which remains protected, whether through trade policies or 
through the application of instruments of anti -injurious practices in international trade  unlike the 
GCC market . 
Therefore, GCC -TSAIP concludes that the GCC industry is in a situation of threat of serious injury 
for the products under investigation.  
(c) Unforeseen developments  
The GCC-TSAIP examined collected data on unforeseen developments and made the following 
determinations:  
• The surplus of product ion capacity in  the steel industry worldwide has continually increased , 
since 2000, as it increased from 1,069.5 million tons in 2000 to 2,233.7 million tons in 2018, 
which means an increase by 108.85%. Moreover, during the year 2018, the utilized capacity 
of steel in the world reached 81%, which reduced globally the gap between the maximum 
production capacity and actual production .  Consequently,  these increase s in both maximum 
capacity and actu al production of the steel industry has led to the disparity between supply 
and demand worldwide. Additionally, t he Worldwide -Steel industry statistics indicate that 
there almost an additional investment  of 110.2 million tons will take a place in productio n 
capacity during the period of 2019 -2021, which will raise the maximum steel production 
capacity in the world during the same period to 2,343.9 million tons  representing  an increase 
of 5% compared to 2018.  
The actions taken by many countries under  the restrictive trade practices, whether through 
their trade policies or the Anti -Injurious Practices in International Trade for protecting the 
steel sector in their domestic industries, can be considered as unexpected developments that 
contributed to increasing imports and even threatening to increase imports to the GCC States 
market ; for example, the United States of America, the European Union, Turkey, Morocco, the 
Arab Republic of Egypt, the countries of the Eurasian Union (Russia, Armenia, Kazakhstan and 
Kyrgyzstan), Canada, Australia and India. Furthermore, a ccording to the World Trade 
Organization  statistics , the number of investigations in the steel sector increased to 
625 investigations during the period from 2013 to 2018 ; while for the first half of 2019, 
47 investigations were recorded. Moreover, it is worth mentioning that s ome of these 
investigations ended with the imposition of final measures, including 363 anti -dumping during 
the period 2014 -2018, while the measures applied in the first half of a year 2019 has been 
recorded 44 final measures . The major countries apply ing these measures  are, the 
United  States of America, the European Union, Canada, Russia, Turkey, Australia, Mexico, 
Brazil, India, South Africa, Egypt and South  Korea . Since  these countries are considered major 
importers of steel products in the World and by looking at the trade policies applied by these 
countries to protect their markets and industries, that leads countries , who faced protective 
measures against  their export markets , to search for other unprotected markets . As a G/SG/N/8/ARE/3 • G/SG/N/8/BHR/3 • G/SG/N/8/KWT/3 • G/SG/N/8/OMN/3 • G/SG/N/8/QAT/3 • 
G/SG/N/8/SAU/3  
 
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  consequence , the GCC States market has been target ed for these imports, which may impact 
negatively on the GCC States industry.  
Therefore, GCC -TSAIP concludes, preliminarily, that the abo vementioned unforeseen 
developments have led and will further lead to a massive  increase of GCC imports of the 
products under investigation.  
(d) Causal Link  
Based on the preliminary determination , GCC-TSAIP  has examined the impact of other factors, other 
than the massive increase in imports that might cause serious injury to the GCC industry, such as 
trade restrictive practices, consumption, export performance and technology; however , these factors 
did not c ontribute to the serious injury suffered by the GCC industry.  
Therefore, the GCC -TSAIP found that there is sufficient preliminary evidence to the existence of the 
causal link between the serious injury and threat of serious injury caused to the GCC industr y and 
the increase of GCC imports of the product under investigation.  
2. Information on whether there is an absolute increase in imports or an increase in 
imports relative to domestic production  
The product under investigation is being imported into GCC count ries in such increased quantities in 
absolute terms and relative to GCC production as follows:  
Index 201 4=100  
 2014  2015  2016  2017  2018  Jul 2018 
Jun 2019  
Imports Volume 
(ton)  3,774.47  4,482.14  3,834.14  4,460.59  4,591.83  4,233.26  
Index  100 118.75  101.58  118.18  121.65  112.16  
Imports/production 
ratio  100 122.27  107.88  138.15  129.53  159.75  
The GCC -TSAIP considered as shown in the table above that the product s under investigation  are 
being imported into the GCC States market in such increasing quanti ties in absolute terms and 
relative to GCC production , where the absolute imports increased continuously during the 
investigation period  and reached its peak 21.65% in 2018, then continued to increase during 
July 2018 - June 2019 by 12.16% compared to 2014. Related to the production, the imports 
increased continuously and reached its peak 59.75% in last year of the period of investigation.  
Therefore, the GCC -TSAIP made a preliminary determination that recent, sudden, sharp and 
significant increase of the imports of the imported products occurred in the investigation period . G/SG/N/8/ARE/3 • G/SG/N/8/BHR/3 • G/SG/N/8/KWT/3 • G/SG/N/8/OMN/3 • G/SG/N/8/QAT/3 • 
G/SG/N/8/SAU/3  
 
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  3. Description of the product involved  
The products under investigation are certain steel products which are classified under the GCC -
Unified Tariff Code as following:  
No. Products Categories  HS Code  
1 Flat Hot Rolled Coils and Sheets  720827; 720837; 720838; 720839; 720851; 
720853; 720854; 721113; 721114; 721119  
2 Cold Rolled Flat Steel Coils and Sheets  720916; 720917; 720918; 720926; 720927; 
720928; 720990; 722550  
3 Metallic Coated Steel  721030; 721049; 721069; 721220; 721250; 
721260; 722591; 722592; 722599  
4 Organic Coated Steel  721240  
5 Reinforced Steel Bars and Wire Rod  721310; 721320; 721391; 721399; 721410; 
721430; 721510; 721550; 721590; 722710; 
722720; 722810; 722820; 722840; 722850; 
722860  
6 Circular, Square, and Rectangular Sticks and 
Rods 721491; 721499; 722211; 722219  
7 Sections  721610; 721631; 721632; 730810  
8 Angles and Shapes  721621; 721650; 730120  
9 Welded and Seamless Pipes and Tubes 
Including Items for Transporting Water, Gas 
and Oil  730424; 730520; 730531; 730539; 730611; 
730619; 730640; 730661; 730690  
 
__________