The World Trade Organization will launch an investigation into U.S. import taxes on Chinese tires at a Jan. 19 meeting of trade diplomats in Geneva. At the heart of the dispute is a tariff approved by President Obama that aims to slow China's rapid export growth and protect American jobs in the tire sector.
Obama decided Sept. 11 to apply an increased duty on all imports of passenger vehicle and light truck tires from China for a three-year period. The increased duty, which took effect on Sept. 26, was set at 35 percent on top of the normal 4 percent duty applicable to passenger vehicle and light truck tires. The additional duty will fall to 30 percent in the second year and 25 percent in the third year.
Obama's decision was taken after the U.S. International Trade Commission June 18 found, in response to a petition brought by the United Steelworkers, that surging imports of Chinese tires had caused or were threatening to cause market disruption to U.S. producers of like or directly competitive products.
The WTO included China's complaint in an agenda published for a meeting on Jan. 19 of its dispute body. The U.S. delayed China's request last month for the establishment of an investigative panel, but it can't do so again under WTO rules.
The panel will be asked to evaluate whether the U.S. tariffs violate rules governing trade among the WTO's 153 members. Trade cases often take years to resolve but can result in the WTO authorizing retaliatory sanctions.
