Directorate of National Production Protection

Introduction to the Directorate:

Jordan became a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) on 11^th April 2000. This accession has resulted in many structural and legal changes, including the creation of National Production Protection Directorate in the Ministry of Industry and Trade to be the competent authority to implement the WTO agreements related to safeguards, anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures.

The National Production Protection Directorate implements these agreements through Jordanian laws and regulations in a way that provides protection and assistance to the local industry and local producers who suffer from harm as a result of harmful or unfair commercial practices. Those practices are represented in rising imports of a certain product to the Hashemite kingdom, or importing it in subsidized or dumped prices.

The Directorate seeks to build a solid foundation that supports the international trading system and provides protection for local producers from harmful and unfair foreign trade practices and supports them to improve the conditions of the local industry and increase their competitiveness in the local and international markets. The Directorate ensures the confidentiality and privacy of information provided by local producers and strives to protect their interests.

Mission and Vision:

Mission:

To enhance investment and business environment to be more competitive through application of international trade agreements to protect local producers from harmful and unfair commercial practices.

Vision:

Contribute to building and strengthening a competitive national economy to improve the conditions of the local industry and increase its competitiveness in local and international markets.

Objectives:

The Directorate seeks to enhance investment and business environment to be more competitive through application of international trade agreements to protect local producers from harmful and unfair trade practices, by achieving the following objectives:

Protection of national production from harmful or unfair trade practices.

Services provided by the Directorate:
1. Issuing a decision to impose a Trade Remedy Measure against increasing imports.
2. Verifying complaints of increase in imports.

For more information and to view the service forms, please visit the e-services / service directory and /Forms Guide".

Divisions:

Anti-Dumping Division:

The Anti-Dumping Agreement is one of the trade remedy means provided by the WTO to member countries to deal with harmful and unfair trade practices. The National Production Protection Directorate in the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Supply is the competent authority to implement the WTO agreements related to trade protection means, including Anti-Dumping Agreement.

The Directorate, through the National Production Protection Legislation, the National Production Protection Law No. 21 of 2004, and Anti-Dumping and Support System No. 26 of 2003, provides protection to local producers suffering from import damage at dumped prices by taking appropriate measures to protect them.

According to the concept of the agreement, dumping occurs when foreign manufacturers export their products to the Kingdom at prices below their normal value (the selling price of those products in their local market). If exporting price is less than the usual value after making required settlements, dumping has occurred. Settlements means comparing export price to the normal value at the same commercial level, which is usually the selling price of the factory (producer) in the country of export.

The Anti-Dumping Division in the National Production Protection Directorate shall conduct the necessary investigations regarding harmful commercial practices resulting from increased importation of a dumped product into the Kingdom.

Key elements for anti-dumping Measure:

Imposing anti-dumping duties is conditioned by the following basic elements:

Existence of a local industry producing a commodity similar to the one being imported.
Occurrence of dumping provided that the margin of dumping is not less than 2%.
There is an increase in dumped imports in absolute or relative terms compared to local production (provided that the imports are not marginal).
The element of material harm or threat of harm to local producers was realized
There is a causal link between the harm to local producers and the increase in dumped imports.

Timeline of anti-dumping cases (attached).

Safeguards Division:

Jordan`s accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) has allowed it to adopt mechanisms to protect its local industry against fair and unfair harmful practices. One of those mechanisms is represented in the safeguards agreement that enables the member state in WTO to use it to prevent the harmful fair practices from increasing in imports.

The Safeguards Division in the National Production Directorate conducts the necessary investigations on harmful practices and the resulting harm. Those harmful practices are represented in increasing imports of a certain product to the Kingdom.

Key elements of Safeguards Measures:

Existence of local industry that produces a similar or competitive commodity to the imported product.
There has been an increase in imports in absolute or relative terms compared to local production.
The elements of serious harm or threat of serious harm to local industry are realized.
The main cause of the harm is the presence of increased imports (causal relationship).

Timeline of safeguards Cases (attached).

International Cooperation and Subsidies Division:

The division is responsible for studying the provisions of Trade Remedies agreements including the WTO agreements on Safeguards, anti-dumping and ~~anti-~~subsidies and countervailing measures agreements, and international and bilateral/ multilateral agreements as well as the national production protection legislations.

The division is concerned with identifying areas of cooperation with Arab and international parties in the field of Trade Remedies as well as discussing possible potentials for exchanging experiences to achieve the common interests of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and other countries whether in on a bilateral or a multilateral framework, and

The division is also responsible for implementing the Subsidy and Countervailing measures Agreement as one of the trade remedies mechanisms provided by the WTO to member countries to face harmful trade practices. The agreement aims at preventing governments from using subsidies that leads to negative effects on international and local trade and conducting policies to support specific industries or providing prohibited subsidy.

According to the concept of the agreement, subsidy is the financial contribution provided by the government or a public body in a country to provide benefits from the subsidy granted, where the benefit arises when the recipient receives a financial contribution in conditions better than those prevailing in the market. Only specific subsidy is applicable to the provisions of the agreement, i.e. subsidy must be limited to an institution, industry, or a group of institutions or industries (referred to as specific institutions) or limited to institutions within a specific geographical area, or prohibited subsidy, i.e. granted at the level of export performance or which depends on the use of local goods instead of imported. When the granting authority establishes objective conditions governing eligibility for subsidy, the allocation does not exist.

Key elements for anti-subsidy Measure:

Imposing countervailing duties, (anti-subsidy Measure) is conditioned by the following basic elements:

Existence of a local industry producing a commodity similar to the one being imported.
Occurrence of subsidy provided that the margin of subsidy is not less than 1%. (2% for developing countries).
There is an increase in the subsidized imports in absolute or relative terms compared to local production (provided that the imports are not marginal).
The element of material harm or threat of harm to local producers was realized
There is a causal link between the harm to local producers and the increase in dumped imports.

In case the above conditions are met with the percentage of local industry representation in the applicantion (local producers of the same product as a whole or whose production accounts for a significant proportion of their total local production of these products), and after conducting investigations, countervailing measures can be imposed, after proving of subsidy existence, harm to the national industry and a causal relationship between the subsidy provided and the alleged damage.

Timeline of anti-subsidies cases (attached).

International Cooperation and Subsidies Division Objectives:

Providing Protection to the domestic Industry against unfair trade practices, and achieving cooperation with Arab and international parties to serve National Production Protection Directorate, following WTO work updates, communicating with international assistance programs in order to obtain various assistance to build and strengthen the capabilities and competencies of National Production Protection Directorate and its employees.

Forms of International Cooperation

Bilateral cooperation protocols according to the volume of cooperation and joint work between the two countries.
Coordinating with anti-dumping, anti-subsidy and Safeguards authorities’ agencies in other countries, especially with regard to training, and bilateral, regional and international activities in the field of trade remedies.
Organizing regional and national workshops, exchanging experiences, strengthening industrial interdependence and protecting national production.

Mechanisms of the International Cooperation and Subsidies division:

Conducting the necessary investigations regarding harmful commercial practices resulting from increased imports of a subsidized product to the Kingdom.

Identifying areas of cooperation with Arab and international parties in the field of Trade Remedies including participation in the negotiation committees and preparation of protocols and executive programs between the Directorate and its counterparts in Arab and foreign countries in the field of Trade Remedies.
Communicating with international assistance programs to provide assistance and technical support to the Directorate in order to build and strengthen the capabilities and competencies of the Directorate and its staff (through meetings of joint committees) through providing technical assistance to the Directorate through:
- Attending meetings of joint committees
- Identifying research points related to the protection of national production
- Following up on the implementation of international assistance programs
Following up on the execution of AGADIR Agreement as well as the Jordanian proposals submitted to the Economic and Social Council concerning the establishment of a Trade Remedy Arab mechanism and Studying proposals of Arab countries in the field of trade remedies.

Exchanging expertise in the field of protecting national production in a way that achieves common interests of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and other countries, whether in the bilateral or multilateral framework.

National Industry Affairs Division:

The division undertakes the task of studying the complaints submitted by the national industry regarding the increase of imports of commodities or importing them at dumped or subsidized prices as the Department prepares a preliminary complaint study that aims to introduce the Kingdome`s imports situation compared to the commodity investigated in the complaint, and what includes of quantity analysis of imports and exports and recognizing the exporting countries, their shares and the CIF values. In order to enable the Directorate to consider the possibility of protecting local industry through the application of national production protection legislation, the exporting countries, their shares and CIF values shall be communicated with the complainant, informed of the results of the study and raise their awareness of the requirements of protection issues.

The division undertakes the task of studying complaints submitted by the national industry regarding the increase of imports of a commodity or importing them at dumped or subsidized prices. In order to enable the Directorate to consider the possibility of protecting the domestic industry through the application of national production protection legislation, the complainant is communicated with the complainant, informed of the results of the study and raise their awareness them of the requirements of the protection issues.