US Trade Agency Votes to Continue OTR Tyre Dumping Claims

The United States International Trade Commission has voted to further investigate the joint petition presented by Titan International and the United Steelworkers in the wake of accusations of foul play on the part of Chinese OTR tyre manufacturers and China’s government. The Commission voted 6 to 0 in favour of continuing the investigation into alleged dumping of OTR tyres onto the US market and illegal government subsidies.

According to the International Trade Commission, 18 per cent of all OTR tyres sold in the US during 2006 were sourced in China, a US$306 million chunk of the market. As this percentage is growing year on year both Titan and the union see China as a growing threat to both US based OTR tyre manufacturers and the almost 4,000 workers they employ, and have stated their opinion that imposing duties on Chinese OTR tyre imports is the only means by which the tide of cheap imports may be stemmed.

“We are very encouraged that the Commerce Department voted to proceed with the investigation, 6-0,” said Titan chairman and CEO Maurice M. Taylor Jr. “We still have a long way to go, but the important part of this whole process is determining what is fair and lawful. The American working men and women can be as competitive as anyone in the world, but when foreign governments subsidise and carry unlawful trade practices, then the US government must even the playing field.”

A coalition of 17 Chinese companies is fighting the proposed imposition of duties, and argue that US companies are in good shape and not harmed by imports. This stance is backed by China’s Commerce Ministry. Spokesperson for the Ministry, Wang Xinpei, stated that “China’s position towards this question is clear. We hope that the United States will be capable of adopting realistic measures to resolve this problem, and avoid making China-US economic and trade problems increasingly complex.”

The August 20 decision made by the International Trade Commission is the first of four rulings Titan and other domestic producers must win in order for duties of as much as 210 per cent to be levied on Chinese OTR imports. The agency is scheduled to present its determinations and views to the US Department of Commerce on August 27. It is up to the US Commerce Department to decide whether Chinese companies are dumping their products and receiving government subsidies, and, if this proves to be the case, what level of duty should be imposed. The first of those decisions is not expected to be made until October.