US panel rules on Chinese tire dumping

In what might be a sign of tougher trade policies, the U.S. government’s International Trade Commission rules that low-cost tires imported from China had flooded the market. Acting on a 2005 complaint from the United Steelworkers, whose members make the steel wire used in tires, the panel found that the Chinese tires had flooded the market and disrupted domestic supplies. China has publicly protested the finding; the panel has recommended that Chinese tires be placed under a quota of roughly have the volume currently shipped.

Automotive News pointed out that, in 2007, China had protested a recall of imported Chinese tires whose anti-separating technology had been quietly dropped by the manufacturer.

Indiana legislators, both Republican and Democrat, reportedly approved of the finding and of sanctions.