WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/ADP/Q1/ARG/23 
G/SCM/Q1/ARG/23 19 June 2009 
 
 
(09-3007) 
Committee on Anti-Dumping Practices Committee on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures Original:   Spanish 
 
 
 
NOTIFICATION OF LAWS AND REGULATIONS UNDER 
ARTICLES 18.5 AND 32.6 OF THE AGREEMENTS  
 
Responses to Questions Posed by the UNITED STATES
1 
Regarding the Notification of ARGENTINA2 
   The following communication, dated 15 June 2009,  is being circulated at the request of the 
delegation of Argentina. 
 
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Question 1
 
 
 Please explain the relationship between Argentina's Regulatory Decree 
(Decree) 1393/20083 and Law No. 24,425.4  Law No. 24,425 states that the WTO Uruguay Round 
Agreements are "adopted" in Argentina.  A re the WTO Agreement on Implementation of 
Article VI of the General Agreement on Ta riffs and Trade 1994 (Anti-Dumping Agreement) 
and the Agreement on Subsidies and Count ervailing Measures (Subsidies Agreement) 
self-implementing under Argentine law?  In the event of a conflict between the provisions of 
Decree 1393/2008 and those of the Anti-Dumping Agreement or the Subsidies Agreement, which 
legal authority takes precedent? 
 
Response  
 
Decree No. 1393/2008 ratifies Law No. 24.425, laying down the procedure required to ensure 
the effective implementation of the Agreements  incorporated in domestic legislation by 
Law No. 24.425.  These normative instruments comple ment and cannot overlap with each other.  The 
existence of the Decree would not be justifie d if the Agreements had not been enacted by 
Law No. 24.425. 
 
For that matter, as stated in its preambular pa rt, the Decree was issued pursuant to Article 99, 
paragraph 2, of the National Cons titution, which empowers the Executiv e to issue such instructions 
and regulations as may be necessary for the enforcem ent of laws, but on no account can a regulation 
alter the spirit of the law. 
                                                      
1 G/ADP/Q1/ARG/20-G/SCM/Q1/ARG/20. 
2 G/ADP/N/1/ARG/1/Suppl.9-G/SCM/N/1/ARG/1/Suppl.8. 
3 Notified on 15 September 2008 in /ADP/N /1/ARG/1/Suppl.9-G/SCM/N/1/ARG/1/Suppl.8. 
4 Notified on 4 March 1996 in G/ADP/N/1/ARG/1 /Suppl.1 and G/SCM/N/1/ARG/1/Suppl.1. G/ADP/Q1/ARG/23 
G/SCM/Q1/ARG/23 Page 2 
 
 
  As regards implementation of the Anti-Dumpi ng Agreement and the Agreement on Subsidies 
and Countervailing Measures, Article 75.22 of the National Constitution stipulates that treaties approved by the Congress of the Nation in the exercise of its powers take precedence over laws. 
In view of the foregoing, there is no conflict between Regulatory Decree No. 1393/2008 and 
Law No. 24.425. 
 
Question 2
 
 
 Article 76 of Decree 1393/2008 states that, "Upon the entry into force of this Decree, 
Decree No. 1088 of 28 August 2001 and Decree No. 1326 of 10 November 1998 shall be 
repealed".  Given that Decree 1393/2008 replaces th ese prior Decrees, explain why definitions of 
"dumping", "subsidy", "injury," and "like prod uct", which are included in Decree 1088/2001, 
are not included in Decree 1393/2008. 
 Response
 
 
The definitions of "dumping", "subsidy", "injur y," and "like product" are contained in the 
respective Agreements ratified by Decree No. 1393/ 08, hence making their incorporation in the 
regulatory framework redundant.  
It should be mentioned that the definiti ons in Decree No. 1088/2001 were drawn from the 
Agreements.  However, the decree in question was never put into effect.  
Question 3
 
 
 Please explain why Decree 1393/2008 does not include procedures for determining the 
existence of dumped or subsidized imports, injury  to the domestic industry, and causal link are 
identified. 
 
Response  
 
 As regards determination of injury and causal  link (Article 3) and the parts corresponding to 
the revisions (11.3), Argentina considers that th e definitions and provisions contained in the 
Agreements are sufficient, and that on certain unsp ecified points reference can also be made to the 
precedents of disputes handled by panels and the Appellate Body.  Question 4
 
 
 Article 45 of Decree 1393/2008 permits the implementing authority to "establish 
minimum f.o.b. export values" for purposes of determining the appropriate antidumping or 
countervailing duty assessment.  Please describe  the methodology that the implementing 
authority will use to establish minimum Free-On-Board export values, and how that 
methodology comports with the requirements of Article 9 of the Anti-Dumping Agreement.  
Response
 
  F.o.b. values apply on the basis of specified normal values, in accordance with Article 9 of 
the Anti-Dumping Agreement, which provides that " … the amount of the anti-dumping duty to be 
imposed shall be the full margin of dumping or less ". 
  G/ADP/Q1/ARG/23 
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  Question 5  
 
 Please explain how, under the rules and regul ations described in Decree 1393/2008, the 
administrative authority determines whether a co mplaint was filed on behalf of the domestic 
industry, in accordance with Article 4 of the Anti-Dumping Agreement and Article 16 of the 
Subsidies Agreement.  Does Decree 1393/2008 incorpor ate the definition of "domestic industry" 
provided by Article 4 of the Anti-Dumping  Agreement and Article 16 of the Subsidies 
Agreement?  If not, please explain what defini tion of "domestic industry" the administering 
authority will rely on. 
 
Response  
 
Argentina's Law No. 24.425 has incorporated the WTO Uruguay Round Agreements in 
domestic law and therefore constitutes the legal fra mework for Decree No. 1393/2008.  Hence all the 
definitions in the Agreements apply to the D ecree in question.  The administering authority 
consequently relies on the provisions of the respec tive Agreements (Article 4 of the Anti-Dumping 
Agreement and Article 16 of the Subsidies Agreemen t) to define the notion of "domestic industry". 
 
Question 6  
 
 Article 5 of Decree 1393/2008 requires that applicants provide non-confidential summaries of any information contained in the a pplication for which confidential treatment is 
requested. 
 
a. Please clarify whether public summaries of confidential documents generated by 
the investigating authority will be made available to interested parties. 
 
Response
 
  Public summaries of confidential information can be found in the case file to which all 
accredited parties have access.  The purpose of the su mmaries is to ensure tran sparency and to allow 
each of the other parties to have some degree of knowledge of the kind of  information and content 
that is relevant to the exercise of its right of defence.  
b. Please describe how and when parties w ill be provided access to non-confidential 
summaries of confidential information in accordance with the requirements of 
Article 6.5 of the Anti-Dumping Agreement and Article 12.4 of the Subsidies 
Agreement. 
 
Response
 
 
One of the prerequisites for the acceptance of c onfidential information, given the nature of 
such information, is the submission and the au thorities' approval of non- confidential summaries.  
Once approved, public summaries are incorporated in th e file and, as stated above, are made available 
to the parties.  
c. Does the administering authority allow the public to access non-confidential 
documents that are maintained in the public case file? 
 
 As established in Annex VII of Decree No. 1172/ 03, all public information in the case file is 
available for consultation by any natural or legal pers on, whether public or private, that so requests in G/ADP/Q1/ARG/23 
G/SCM/Q1/ARG/23 Page 4 
 
 
  writing, in accordance with the procedure and terms of  the Decree in question.  For further details, see 
http://infoleg.mecon.gov.ar/infolegInter net/anexos/90000-94 999/90763/norma.htm
. 
 
Question 7  
 
 Article 6 of Decree 1393/2008 states that, after reviewing the application for imposition 
of duties, "the Commission shall give its opinion on the existence of one (1) like domestic product".  The precise meaning of this provisi on remains unclear to the United States.  
Therefore, United States would appreciate a clarification of this provision, including whether 
the Commission determines the definition of th e domestic like product prior to initiation. 
 
Response
 
 
A definition of the product under investigation and the existence of a domestic like product, 
within the meaning of the Anti-Dumping Ag reement and the Agreement on Subsidies and 
Countervailing Measures, are determined in the st age prior to initiation, which is what makes it 
possible to establish the domestic industry as requi red for the purposes of analysing representativeness 
and ascertaining adequacy of evidence of injury and causality.   Once the investigation has been initiated, how ever, comments can be put forward with the 
participation of all interested parties regarding th e definition of the product under investigation and/or 
the existence of a domestic like produc t, which may lead to adjustments. 
 
Question 8
 
 
 Article 12.1.1(vi) of the Anti-Dumping Agreement requires that public notice of initiation of an investigation contains "the ti me-limits allowed to int erested parties for making 
their views known".  Article 12 of Decree 1393/2008 , however, contains no requirement that 
information about these time-limits be included in the decision to initiate an investigation.  Please explain how Argentina will fully comply wi th the notice requirement of Article 12.1.1(vi) 
of the Anti-Dumping Agreement. 
 
Response
 
  Decree No. 1393/2008 is cited in the public noti ce.  Article 18 of the Decree establishes the 
time-limit for interested parties to present evidence. 
 
Question 9
 
 
 Article 20 of Decree 1393/2008 states that th e Undersecretariat or the Commission may 
hold meetings with interested parties "where appropriate".  What are the criteria that the Undersecretariat or the Commission uses to  determine whether such meetings are 
"appropriate"?  How is this provision consistent with Article 6.2 of the Anti-Dumping 
Agreement and Article 12.2 of the Subsidies Agreem ent, which require that authorities shall, 
upon request, provide opportunities for interest ed parties to meet parties with adverse 
interests? 
 Response
 
 
Article 20 of Decree No. 1393/2008 empowers th e Undersecretariat and the Commission to 
hold meetings with interested parties ex officio (on th eir own initiative).  This is not inconsistent with, 
but merely complements, Article 6.2 of the An ti-Dumping Agreement (which, as mentioned above,  G/ADP/Q1/ARG/23 
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  has force of law in Argentina), which provi des that "the authorities shall, on request , provide 
opportunities for all interested parties to meet thos e parties with adverse interests, so that opposing 
views may be presented and rebuttal arguments offered ...".  
Since the question also refers Article 12.2 of the SCM Agreement, it should be emphasized 
that this provision says nothing about the opportunity to meet parties with adve rse interests - to quote 
the words of the question.  What its wording does establish, however, is the possibility for interested 
parties and Members to present information ora lly, upon justification, and the requirement 
subsequently to reduce such submissions to writing.   As in the case of the Anti-Dumping Agreement, 
as regards subsidy proceedings Article 20 of Decr ee No. 1393/2008 is not in consistent with but 
complements the SCM Agreement (which, as mentione d above, has force of law in Argentina) in 
providing that the investigating authority may, on its  own initiative, convene a meeting of the parties. 
 
Question 10
 
 
 As referenced in Articles 67 and 68 of Decree 1393/2008 and pursuant to Article 13 of 
the Anti-Dumping Agreement and Article 23 of the Subsidies Agreement regarding judicial review, please describe the opportunities that a re available to interested parties to request 
administrative or judicial review of anti-dumping or anti-subsidy proceedings.  Please also identify the specific laws, regulations, and authority that would govern such appeals. 
 
Response
 
 
The remedies provided for in the National La w on Administrative Procedures No. 19.549 and 
the Regulations on Administrative Procedures, De cree No. 1759/72 T.O. 1991, are applications for 
reconsideration and appeals to a higher administrati ve authority, whereby administrative proceedings 
are exhausted.  Once an administrative decision has been issued, the parties may file for judicial 
review of the decision in question.   The National Law on Administrative Procedures has been duly notified to the World Trade 
Organization. 
 
Question 11
 
 
 Are notifications published in the Official Journal also made available online?  If so, 
please identify the relevant website address(es). 
 
Response  
  Resolutions published in the Offici al Journal can be viewed at:  www.boletinoficial.gov.ar
, 
http://www.infoleg.gov.ar/ . 
 
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