USW, China firms facing off at ITC hearing (updated)

WASHINGTON (June 9, 2015) — Both proponents and opponents of antidumping and countervailing duties on Chinese consumer tires were well represented at a U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) hearing today in Washington, according to the preliminary list of those scheduled to appear.

The agenda shows the United Steelworkers (USW) union, as the petitioner for the duties, will make the opening remarks. Terence P. Stewart of the law firm Steward and Stewart will speak on the USW's behalf.

The hearing is taking place at ITC offices in Washington, D.C.. The hearing is described as the final phase antidumping and countervailing duty investigations pertaining to the “Certain Passenger Vehicle and Light Truck Tires from China, Inv. Nos. 701-TA-522 and 731-TA-1258.”

The docket shows the USW will have a contingent of eight individuals on hand.

Scheduled to speak in opposition of the duties will be:

• A representative of Grunfeld, Desiderio, Lebowitz, Silverman & Klestadt L.L.P. representing the Sub-Committee of Tire Producers of the China Chamber of Commerce of Metals, Minerals & Chemical Importers;
• The China Rubber Industry Association;
• Yu Yi, vice chairman, China Chamber of Commerce of Metals Minerals & Chemicals Importers & Exporters;
• Gustavo Lima, CEO, Oriente Triangle Latin America Inc.;
• Jason Rothstein, general manager of North American Operations, Aelous Tyre Co. Ltd.;
• Seth Kaplan, senior economic advisor, and Andrew Szamosszegi, principal,Capital Trade Inc.;
• Chen Yang and Zheng Xu, attorneys, Jincheng, Tongda & Neal;
• Hogan Lovells US L.L.P. on behalf of ITG Voma Corp.;
• Dennis Mangola, CEO, DMC Consulting Inc.
• Kivanc A. Kirgiz, principal, Cornerstone Research; and
• Jonathan T. Stoel and Craig A. Lewis, attorneys, Jochum Shore & Trossevin P.C. on behalf of American Omni Trading Co.

Representing various constituencies from Congress will be:

Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala.; Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio; Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va.; Rep. David Price, D-N.C.; and Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Ala.

Meanwhile, Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., urged the ITC “to act decisively to level the playing field for tire imports to protect U.S. tire workers in Western New York from unfair Chinese trade practices.”

Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, echoed those sentiments, saying, “An affirmative vote will give the domestic tire industry and its workers the chance to recover from the injury they have suffered and the chance to thrive in the years ahead.”

In a press statement released prior to the ITC hearing, Sen. Schumer outlined a number of points, including that “there are over a thousand New Yorkers employed by Goodyear Dunlop's tire plant in Tonawanda and rubber facility in Niagara Falls who produce passenger car and light truck tires who (are) impacted by unfairly-priced tire imports from China.”

He explained that the ITC's preliminary decision showed that  tire manufacturers in New York and across the country “have suffered significant injury from China's unfairly-supported tire imports in recent years.” Between 2011 and the first quarter of 2014, he noted, nearly 15 percent of the domestic workers in the tire manufacturing industry lost their jobs despite the American economic recovery.

Sen. Schumer claimed that protections that once existed for U.S. producers, “that leveled the playing field against trade cheats like China and allowed American worked to compete and succeed in the global marketplace,” expired in 2012, “and this report provides further evidence that the Department of Commerce and ITC must work to level the playing field for U.S. manufacturers.”

“From tires to steel to stealing intellectual property, the bottom line is that China is a repeat-offender trade cheat; and the 1,000-plus productive and talented workers at tire manufacturers like Goodyear Dunlop in Tonawanda and Niagara Falls need the Department of Commerce and ITC to be the cop on the beat and level the playing field for the American worker,” he continued.

“More than 1,000 hard-working Americans' jobs are being put at risk because they are forced to compete with artificially-cheap foreign imports, and that needs to change ASAP.

“American manufacturers and workers can compete and win, but it is essential that foreign competitors — especially from China — play by the same rules. So I am urging the feds to consider the substantial evidence of damage caused by foreign dumping and act decisively to impose protections that will ensure U.S. workers can compete on a level playing field.”

In his testimony, Sen. Portman said, “The fate of the tire industry is very important to my state," and referenced the presence of Goodyear and Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. and their workers in Ohio. 

In particular, he said, Cooper Tire's plant in Findlay, Ohio, saw its daily output cut by more than 4,000 tires a day last year, down from 21,500 tires daily in 2012 just after the previous round of import tariffs had expired.

Sen. Portman singled out China's tire makers for "unfair practices — selling below costs and government subsidies" that have made it possible for Chinese producers to undercut U.S. tires consistently and deeply "to the detriment of American workers." 

Sen. Portman said he got involved with this case after meeting with USW workers from Cooper Tire in Findlay earlier this year to discuss the challenges posed by imported Chinese tires that violate trade laws. Following that meeting, Portman sent a letter in February to the U.S. Secretary of Commerce urging the Administration to closely study this case.