. /.WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/SG/N/6/CHL/4
11 July 2000
(00-2816)
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
CHILE
The following communication, dated 30 June 2000, has been received from the Permanent
Mission of Chile.
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Pursuant to Article 12.1(a) of the WTO Agreement on Safeguards, Chile hereby notifies that,
at its sessions 212 and 213, the investigating authority decided to initiate a safeguard investigation
into imports of powdered and liquid milk, according to the following information:
1. Date of initiation of the investigation:  21 June 2000 (date of publication in the Diario Oficial
(Official Journal)).
2. Products subject to the investigation:
Powdered milk:  classified under tariff headings 04.02.1000, 04.02.2110, 04.02.2120,
04.02.2130, 04.02.2140, 04.02.2150, 04.02.2160, 04.02.2170, 04.02.2180, 04.02.2910,
04.02.2920, 04.02.2930, 04.02.2940, 04.02.2950, 04.02.2960, 04.02.2970 and 04.02.2980 inChile's harmonized tariff.
Liquid UHT milk:  classified under tariff headings 0401.1000, 0401.2000 and 0401.3000 in
Chile's harmonized tariff.
3. Reasons for initiating the investigation:
(i) The investigation was initiated ex officio at the request of the Ministry of Agriculture;(ii) evidence on the basis of which the investigation was initiated:
The increase in imports of milk.In the case of powdered milk, between the period January-April 1997 and
January-April 2000, imports increased from 1,791 to 5,297 tonnes, corresponding to
an increase of over 190 per cent;  in January-April 2000, there was an increase of
38 per cent in comparison with the same period the previous year.
In the case of liquid UHT milk, during the period January-April 2000, 177,000 litres
were imported, which is more than five times the volume imported in 1999.G/SG/N/6/CHL/4
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This increase has caused injury to domestic milk production, as can be seen from the
decrease in production, in domestic prices, in investment and in jobs, as well as a
threat of injury to domestic production of liquid UHT milk.
4. The initiation of the investigation was published in the Diario Oficial  of Wednesday,
21 June 2000, which also indicated the following:
(i) That the final decision would be adopted within 90 days from the date of initiation of
the investigation;
(ii) that the public hearing would be held on Friday, 18 August 2000, at 9.30 a.m. at
Agustinas 853, 12th floor, Santiago;
(iii) that any background information which the interested parties may wish to submit in
writing and any requests for a hearing before the Commission that they may wish to
put forward should be submitted within 30 days following the initiation of this
investigation to the  Secretaría Técnica , (Technical Secretariat), Huérfanos 1175,
4th floor, Central Bank of Chile, telephone:  670 2766, fax:  671 1881.  Any additional
information may be consulted at the Technical Secretariat.
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