WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/SG/N/7/TUR/7 
29 July 2009 
 (09-3689) 
Committee on Safeguards Original:   English 
  
 
NOTIFICATION UNDER ARTICLE 12.4 OF THE AGREEMENT 
ON SAFEGUARDS BEFORE TAKING A PROVISIONAL 
SAFEGUARD MEASURE REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 6 
 
TURKEY 
 
(Salt
) 
   The following communication, dated 21 July 2009, is being circulated at the request of the 
Delegation of Turkey.   
 
_______________ 
 
 
We enclose a notification pursuant to Article 12.4 of the Agreement on Safeguards, before 
taking a provisional safeguard measure against imports  of salt and a notification pursuant to Article 9, 
footnote 2 of the Agreement on Safeguards, on taking  a decision not to apply the measure to products 
originating in developing countries.   The initial application of the safeguard measure against imports 
of salt was notified with the document G/SG/N/10/TU R/5, dated 12 July 2006.  The initiation of an 
investigation to review the existing safegua rd measure was notified with the document 
G/SG/N/6/TUR/7/Suppl.1, dated 11 June 2009.   
 A. N
OTIFICATION UNDER ARTICLE 12.4  BEFORE TAKING A PROVISIONAL SAFEGUARD MEASURE  
 
1. The product subject to the proposed provisional safeguard measure 
 
The product subject to the proposed safegua rd measure is classified under "salt" with 
Customs Codes 2501.00.31.00.00, 2501.00.51.00.00, 2501.00.99.10.00, 2501.00.99.90.00.    
2. The proposed provisional safeguard measure 
 
It is proposed to impose provisional safeguard measu re in the form of variable duty that will 
be implemented for the imports unde r the CIF price of 29 USD per ton.  If imports are undertaken at a 
CIF price equal to or above the relevant threshol d level established (29 USD per ton), the imports will 
not be subject to the proposed measure.  If imports are undertaken at a lower price, a duty as much as 
the difference between the CIF price and the thres hold price established (29 USD per ton) will be 
charged.  The duty shall be collected as a security.   
 
3. Entry into force of the proposed  provisional safeguard measure 
 
The provisional safeguard measure is proposed to enter into force, with the publication of the 
approval of the Council of Ministers in the Offici al Gazette no later than 10 August 2009.   
 G/SG/N/7/TUR/7 
Page 2  
 
  4. The expected duration of the provisional safeguard measure 
 
The decision whether or not to extend the exis ting safeguard measure will be made at the end 
of the investigation.  Therefore, the provisiona l safeguard measure shall be applied during the 
investigation period.  In any case, the provisional safeguard measure shall last for 200 days at the 
most.   
 
5. The basis for: 
 
(i) Making a preliminary determination, as provided for in Article 6, that increased 
imports have caused or are th reatening to cause serious injury 
 
The evidence relating to the serious injury suffered by the domestic industry as a result of the 
increase in imports of the product concerned had be en notified with the document G/SG/N/8/TUR/5, 
dated 12 July 2006.  Accordingly, a safeguard measur e against imports of salt for 3 years was put into 
force on 10 August 2006.  Information on the chang es in the level of imports and certain economic 
indicators of the domestic industry that were reco rded during the period the safeguard measure has 
been applied is provided below.    CHANGE IN IMPORTS  
Imports Unit 2006 2007 2008 
Absolute Imports Ton 417,617 205,054 256,165 
Change % - -51 25 
 
 Imports of the product concerned declined by 51 per cent in 2007.  However, imports 
increased by 25 per cent in 2008.    
Unit 2006 2007 2008 
Imports/Production % 21 12 18 
 
 The ratio of the imports to the domestic production of the product subject to measure has a parallel tendency with the market share.   
 
Unit 2006 2007 2008 
Market Share of 
Imports % 21 12 15 
 
 The market share of imports of the product s ubject to application decreased in 2007 after the 
measure taken, but increased in 2008 compared to the previous year.   
 
 Based on the figures relating to imports that  are summarized above, it is concluded that 
imports of the product concerned decreased in the year following the firs t year the measure was 
initiated.  However, imports increased by 25 per cent in 2008.  Besides, the ratio of imports to 
domestic production and market share of imports have parallel tendency with the imports.   
 
ECONOMIC INDICATORS OF THE DOMESTIC INDUSTRY  
A preliminary analysis to assess the impacts of  the existing safeguards on the situation of the 
domestic industry was carried out.  In this analysis , data submitted by 3 domestic producers, that 
constitute major proportion of domes tic production, were utilized.   
 
  G/SG/N/7/TUR/7 
 Page 3 
 
 
  (i) Consumption 
 
Consumption Unit 2006 2007 2008 
Quantity Ton 1,978,930 1,743,296 1,743,150 
Change % - -12 0 
 
 Consumption of the product concerned went down by 12 per cent in 2007 and unchanged 
in 2008.    
(ii) Production 
 
Production Unit 2006 2007 2008 
Quantity Ton 1,969,045 1,725,228 1,435,611 
Change % - -12 -17 
 
 There was a fall in production by 12 per cent in 2007 and 17 per cent in 2008.    
(iii) Capacity and Capacity Utilization Rate (CUR) 
 
Capacity Unit 2006 2007 2008 
Quantity Ton 2,220,000 2,220,000 2,220,000 
CUR % 89 78 65 
 
 Total production capacity of the domestic  industry remained unchanged between the 
years 2006 and 2008.  Capacity utilization ratio has fallen to 78 per cent in 2007 and 65 per cent 
in 2008.   
 
(iv) Domestic Sales 
 
Domestic Sales Unit 2006 2007 2008 
Quantity Ton 1,561,313 1,538,242 1,486,985 
Change % - -1 -3 
 
 Domestic sales of the producers decreased by 1 per cent in 2007 and 3 per cent in 2008.   
 
(v) End of Period Inventories 
 
Inventories Unit 2006 2007 2008 
Quantity Ton 1,000,639 1,237,598 1,197,129 
Change % - 24 -3 
 
 Having increased by 24 per cent in 2007, invent ories of the product concerned closed the 
year 2008 with a slight decrease.   G/SG/N/7/TUR/7 
Page 4  
 
  (vi) Employment 
 
Employment Unit 2006 2007 2008 
Labor  Number 
of 
Worker 1.417 1.459 1.537 
Change % - 3 5 
 
 Number of direct workers employed in the domestic industry rose by 3 per cent in 2007.  There is a further 5 per cent increase in employment in 2008.    
(vii) Productivity 
 
Productivity Unit 2006 2007 2008 
Labor Productivity Ton/ 
Worker 1,390 981 946 
Change % - -29 -4 
 
 Labor productivity fell by 29 per cent in 2007 and 4 per cent in 2008.   
 
(viii) Profits 
 
One of the domestic producers bear loss for th e years examined; the other two firms gain 
profit, except in 2006.   
 
CONCLUSION  
It was determined, in the preliminary analys is, that imports of the product concerned 
decreased notably in the second year after the safegua rd measure was initiated.  However, the imports 
increased by 25 per cent in 2008 despite the safeguard measure.  Hence, it would be fair to say that 
the increase in the imports in 2008 would be higher if there were no measure applied against imports 
of the product concerned.    
Furthermore, the existence of the negative de velopments in the economic indicators of the 
domestic industry suggests that the domestic industr y still suffers from the serious injury caused by 
the increased imports of footwear.   
 
 (ii) Determining the existence of critical circumstances where delay would cause damage 
which it would be difficult to repair 
 
The safeguard measure that is currently be ing applied against imports of the product 
concerned came into force on 10 August 2006 and will come to an end on 9 August 2009.  The 
investigation to review this measure was i nvestigation was initiated on 5 June 2009.   
 
Concerning the required examination that shoul d be carried out within the context of a 
safeguard investigation, it has been understood that  the current investigation will not be completed 
until the end of the 3-year application period of the existing safeguard measure.   
 
It was determined that imports of the produc t concerned increased 25 per cent in 2008 despite 
the current safeguard measure.  Moreover, prelimin ary figures reveal that certain figures relating to 
domestic industry show negativ e trend during the period the safeguard measure has been 
implemented.    G/SG/N/7/TUR/7 
 Page 5 
 
 
  Therefore, bearing in mind that a sudden and significant increase in the imports of the product 
concerned after the end of the 3-year period, highl y probable, could negatively affect the recovery 
period of the domestic industry, the provisional  safeguard measure is proposed to eliminate 
uncertainty that could come out with the ongoing i nvestigation on the necessity of the extension of the 
current measure.  To achieve this objective, the prov isional measure shall be collected as a security.   
 
6. Offer of consultations under Article 12.4 
 
Consistent with Article 12.4 of the Agreement on Safeguards, Turkey is prepared to consult 
on the provisional safeguard measure with those Memb ers having a substantial interest as exporters of 
the product concerned.   
 B. N
OTIFICATION UNDER ARTICLE 9, FOOTNOTE 2 UPON TAKING A DECISION NOT TO APPLY THE 
PROVISIONAL SAFEGUARD MEASURE TO CERTAIN PRODUCTS ORIGINATING IN DEVELOPING 
COUNTRIES  
 
1. The measure 
 
It is proposed to impose provisional safeguard measure in the form of variable duty as 
described in the notification under Article 12.4 above.   
 2. The product subject to the measure 
 
The measure applies to the products described  in paragraph 1 of the notification under 
Article 12.4 above.    3. The developing countries to which the measure is not applied under Article 9.1 of the 
Agreement on Safeguards  
 
The developing countries in the list below are excluded from the measure as they export less 
than 3 per cent of imports to Turkey.    
Afghanistan;  Antigua and Barbuda;  Angola;  Argentina;  American Samoa;  Anguilla;  
Antarctica;  Aruba;  Azerbaijan;  Barbados;  Banglad esh;  Burkina Faso;  Bahrain;  Burundi;  Benin;  
Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela;  Brunei Daruss alam;  Bolivia;  Brazil;  Bahamas;  Bhutan;  
Botswana;  Belize;  Bermuda;  Bouvet Island;  Britis h Virgin Islands;  British Indian Ocean Territory;  
Democratic Republic of Congo;  Cambodia;  Cent ral African Republic;  C ongo;  Côte d'Ivoire;  
Cameroon;  Chad;  Colombia;  Costa Rica;  Cu ba;  Cape Verde;  Cayman Islands;  Chile;  
Christmas Islands;  Cocos Islands;  Cook Islands ;  Djibouti;  Dominica;  Dominican Republic;  
Ecuador;  Eritrea;  Ethiopia;  Fiji;  Federate d States of Micronesia;  Falkland Islands;  
French Polynesia;  French Southern Territories;  Gabon;  Grenada;  Ghana;   Gambia;  Georgia;  
Greenland;  Guinea;  Equatorial Guinea;  Guatemal a;  Guinea-Bissau;  Guyana;  Gibraltar;  Guam;  
Honduras;  Haiti;  Heard Island and McDonald Islands ;  India;  Indonesia;  Iraq;  Iran (Islamic 
Republic of);  Jamaica;  Jordan;  Kazakhstan;  Ke nya;  Kiribati;  Comoros;  St Kitts and Nevis;  
Kuwait;  Kyrgyzstan;  Laos;  Lebanon;  St Lucia;  Sri Lanka;  Liberia;  Lesotho;  Libyan Arab 
Jamahiriya;  Macao;  Madagascar;  Malaysia;  Malawi;  Maldives;  Mali;  Marshall Islands;  
Mauritania;  Mauritius;  Mayotte;  Mexico;  Moldova;  Mongolia;  Morocco;  Mozambique;  
Montserrat;  Namibia;  Niger;  Nigeria;  Nica ragua;  Nepal;  Nauru;  Netherlands Antilles;  
New Caledonia;  Niue Island;  Norfolk Island;  No rthern Mariana Islands;  Oman;  Panama;  Peru;  
Papua New Guinea;  Philippines;  Pakistan;  Palau;  Paraguay;  People’s Republic of China;  Pitcairn;  
Qatar;  Russian Federation;  Rwanda ;  Samoa;  Saudi Arabia;  Solom on Islands;  Seychelles;  Sudan;  
Sierra Leone;  Senegal;  Somalia;  South Africa;  Suriname;  Sao Tomé and Principe;  El Salvador;  
Syrian Arab Republic;  Swaziland;  South Georgi a and South Sandwich Isla nds;  St Helena and G/SG/N/7/TUR/7 
Page 6  
 
  dependencies;  St Pierre and Miquelo n;  Tajikistan;  Thailand;  Togo;  Tunisia;  Tonga;  East Timor;  
Trinidad and Tobago;  Turkmenistan;  Tuvalu;  Ta nzania;  Tokelau;  Turks and Caicos Islands;  
Ukraine;  United Arab Emirates;  United Stat es Minor Outlying Islands;  Uganda;  Uruguay;  
Uzbekistan;  St Vincent;  Vietnam;  Vanuatu;  Virg in Islands of US;  Wallis and Futuna Islands;  
Yemen;  Zambia and Zimbabwe.    
 
 
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