./.RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/STR/Q1/NOR/5
17 June 1999
(99-2461)
Working on Party on
State Trading EnterprisesOriginal:  English
STATE TRADING
Replies to Questions posed by the UNITED STATES1
concerning the New and Full Article XVII Notification of NORWAY2
The following communication, dated 9 June 1999, has been received from the Permanent
Mission of Norway.
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Q. Norway indicates in its notification that it had terminated the exclusive (monopoly)
trade and procurement authorities of the Norwegian Grain Corporation in 1994 and separated
that organization's functions into two organizations:  The Norwegian Grain Corporation(Statens Kornforretning) will continue to buy domestically-produced grain, administer domestic
support schemes for grain, maintain emergency stocks of grains, and administer the import
regime for grains.  Statkorn Holding Ltd. and its subsidiaries, "100 per cent owned by the
Norwegian State through the Royal Ministry of  Agriculture", will carry out the "business
activities" of the former Norwegian Grain Corporation, but private firms will be able to import
in competition with Statkorn Holding AS.
Despite the elimination of Statkorn's exclusive privileges, does it not continue to benefit
from special privileges as defined in Article XVII because it is a wholly-owned government
corporation that trades in global markets?  Could Norway please elaborate on the conditions
under which private firms are allowed to import?
Reply
The present market system in the grain sector entered into force on 1 July 1995.  Domestic
border protection in the grain sector has been established in full accordance with the tariff-based
system of the WTO Agreement.  This border protection system replaced the earlier quantitativeimport restrictions under the state monopoly market regime in place from 1928 until 1995.  According
to the market system in Norway, in line with th e WTO Agreement, anyone is free to import grain,
milled products, or feed concentrates into Norway.
Statkorn Holding Ltd. is not a state trading enterprise, but a fully commercial company with
limited liability and without any exclusive or special rights or privileges.  Imports of grain or grain
products into Norway can be conducted by all participants in the market whether private or
government-owned.  The participants compete on an equal basis.
                                                     
1 G/STR/Q1/NOR/4
2 G/STR/N/1/NOR and G/STR/W/27G/STR/Q1/NOR/5
Page 2
Statkorn Holding Ltd. is 100 per cent owned by the Norwegian State through the Ministry of
Agriculture.  The Norwegian Parliament made a decision in 1998 which implies that Statkorn
Holding's shares are to be noted at the Oslo Stock Exchange in the long term.  In 1999, the Norwegian
Government has put forward to the Parliament a motion of a 49 per cent privatization of Statkorn
Holding in the long term.
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