USW Files Trade Case Against Chinese Imports
According to statistics published by the United Steelworkers, between 2004 and 2008 the volume of tyres imported from China increased 215 per cent, and the value of these imports by 295 per cent. During this same period US tyre production declined by more than a quarter and the domestic industry’s share of the US tyre market dropped from 63 per cent to less than half. These figures represent conditions in a relatively robust period for the industry – since the second half of 2008 the market has shrivelled considerably, and US based tyre producers are feeling the pinch more than ever. For this reason the USW has filed a major trade case against, in its own words, “the flood of imported consumer tyres from China that have led to thousands of job losses and a growing number of plant closings throughout the US.”