TRIB backs Chinese import duties probe

FALLS CHURCH, Va. (Feb. 26, 2016) — The Tire Retread & Repair Information Bureau (TRIB) is backing the United Steelworkers union's petition seeking import duties on truck and bus tires from China, citing the “detrimental impact” that low-cost imports are having on the U.S. tire industry.

While the scope of the government's initial investigation is comparing the impacts of imported tires on domestically produced tires, TRIB is working with the International Trade Commission “to educate the commission on the negative impacts these imports are having on the retread industry and its thousands of workers in the U.S., as well as highlighting the negative environmental impacts the continued growth of low-quality imported tires will have in the U.S.”

TRIB did not elaborate on how it is “working with” the ITC. The bureau did not testify at the recent Department of Commerce hearings on the matter.

The ITC's investigation into Chinese truck and bus tire imports is in response to petitions filed by the USW on Jan. 29.

Low-quality imported Chinese truck and bus tires that are priced below the cost of raw materials are impacting the U.S. retread industry, TRIB said, an industry that generally provides savings of 30 to 60 percent of the cost of a new commercial truck tire.

“Many of these low-cost imports are of too low a quality to successfully be retreaded,” said TRIB Managing Director David Stevens. “So, instead of creating an asset that could be reused successfully multiple times by fleets, these Chinese manufacturers of low-quality tires are creating disposable products that are discarded after one use and will contribute to growing numbers of disease-breeding tire piles in our landfills.

“While the cost of these low-quality imported tires may seem cheaper in the short-term, they will have long-term detrimental impacts to the retread and commercial truck and bus industries,” Mr. Stevens said.

“They will create fewer quality casings that can be retreaded successfully, drive up total cost of ownership and cost per mile of tires for commercial fleets, put thousands of U.S. jobs at risk, and have damaging impacts on the global environment.”

Mr. Stevens went on to point out that U.S. retread industry has been competing successfully on a level-playing field for decades, generating “untold” cost and environmental savings for users in both the public and private sectors.

“We are committed to ensuring the retread industry in the U.S. can continue to compete for decades to come without being unfairly disadvantaged by foreign dumping activities.”

TRIB said it will continue to work with its member organizations and affiliated groups to help educate the ITC and the DOC on the massive positive economic and environmental benefits of the retread industry in the U.S.