Antidumping duties on Chinese truck/bus tires on tap

WASHINGTON (Aug. 29, 2016) — The U.S. Department of Commerce has made an affirmative preliminary determination in its antidumping duty investigation of truck and bus tires imported from China and plans to impose duties ranging from 20.87 to 22.57 percent, depending upon company.

As a result of the preliminary determination, Commerce will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection to impose the antidumping duties retroactively effective 90 days before publication of the document in the Federal Register, according to a Commerce Department fact sheet.

Commerce found a preliminary dumping rate of 20.87 percent against Prinx Chengshan (Shandong) Tire Co. Ltd., one of the two mandatory respondents in the investigation, but said the other, Double Coin Holdings Ltd., is is not eligible for a separate rate and therefore is part of the China-wide entity dumping rate of 22.57 percent.

The anti-dumping duties are in addition to the preliminary countervailing duties Commerce levied in late June, ranging from 17.06 percent to 23.38 percent.

As a result, the bulk of China's tire makers are facing combined duties of 42.79 percent, with one company, Guizhou Tyre Co. Ltd. facing a slightly higher rate of 45.95 percent. Double Coin's combined rate would be 39.63 percent.

Commerce also said it would apply the 20.87-percent rate to “non-selected separate rate respondents,” but did not at this time identify which companies are eligible.

For all other producers and exporters in China, the agency determined a preliminary dumping rate of 22.57 percent. These producers and exporters failed to respond to Commerce's requests for information, it said.

The United Steelworkers union filed petitions for antidumping and countervailing duties against Chinese truck and bus tires with the International Trade Commission Jan. 29. Commerce initiated antidumping and countervailing duty investigations Feb. 19, and the ITC voted 4-2 on March 11 that there was sufficient evidence of material injury to continue the investigation.

At the request of the USW, Commerce postponed its antidumping duty findings by 50 days from the original due date of July 7. The union said more time was needed to analyze the responses of Chinese tire companies.

Commerce's final determination in the antidumping duty investigation is due Jan. 17. If its final determination is affirmative, the ITC will make a final ruling on material injury March 3.

At stake are shipments of nearly 9 million truck tires imported from China, valued at more than $1 billion last year, Commerce said.