Commerce OKs anti-dumping probe for Chinese OTR tyres

Washington DC - The US Commerce Department will go ahead with a formal investigation into anti-dumping and countervailing duty suspicions regarding imported Chinese-made off-the-road tyres, according to the United Steelworkers and Titan International Inc., which jointly brought the petition.

The government is acting on a trade case petition filed jointly June 18 by the USW and Titan with the Commerce Department and the US International Trade Commission.

The action is not official until it is published in the Federal Register, which is expected this week.

In their petition - filed on behalf of the US industry - the USW and Titan claim rising low-cost imports from China have harmed the industry. They cite lost sales, reduced market share, lower production and shipments and reduced employment in the US domestic industry.

"(This) decision to investigate unfair trade practices in China is an important first step in the right direction," said Maurice Taylor Jr., Titan Chairman and CEO. "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."

USW President Leo Gerard said it´s urgent to fight for aggressive enforcement of our nation's trade laws before it's too late and we see more family-supportive jobs lost to China subsidisation and unfair dumping."

The USW and Titan Tire are seeking to have the government impose duties to offset what they claim are unfair Chinese practices of illegal subsidies and dumping, or selling below the cost of production.

As a result of the decision, the petitioners said, the ITC will make a preliminary injury determination on or about Aug. 24. The investigations will continue if the ITC determines there is a reasonable indication that imports from China are injuring or threaten to injure the domestic tire industry.

From Rubber & Plastics news (A Crain publication)