Titan Voices Support for US Investigation

Titan International has released a statement outlining its support of the US Department of Commerce’s antidumping and subsidised duty investigations against OTR tyres imported from China – investigations the company claims were initiated in response to petitions it filed jointly with the United Steelworkers union in June.

“Today’s (August 2) decision to investigate unfair trade practices in China is an important first step in the right direction,” said Titan chairman and CEO Maurice M. Taylor. “Dumping and government subsidies have given Chinese tyre producers an unfair advantage in our market, and it is the US industry and American workers who have suffered as a result.

“Titan is committed to ensuring that trade is fair,” added Taylor. “If these investigations confirm that unfair subsidies and dumping have been occurring, it could result in the imposition of duties on tyre imports from China to offset the harm that such practices cause in our market. By enforcing US trade laws, we can make sure that everyone plays by the same rules and start to level the playing field for the US tyre industry and its workers.”

Preliminary determinations in the investigations are due in October and December of this year. It is not known when the US, traditionally a champion of free trade and the right to unrestricted market access, will decide upon the introduction of legislation intended to make Chinese tyres less competitive.