BEIJING—China's Ministry of Commerce is urging the U.S. government to reconsider the recent decision by the International Trade Commission to levy import duties on Chinese consumer tires, saying the U.S. Commerce Department used “many unfair and discriminative practices” to derive the duty rates.
The decision by the U.S. to impose anti-dumping and countervailing duties on Chinese passenger and light truck tires “will severely damage the export benefits of the Chinese enterprises involved in this case,” the Ministry said in a prepared statement, and therefore “expresses strong dissatisfaction” with the move.
The ministry said the Chinese government “will defend its own rights and interests according to the (World Trade Organization) rules, noting that it has flagged “serious concerns” to the U.S. on several occasions.
In the statement, China urges the U.S. “to abide by the international trade rule once again, carefully use the trade remedy measures, take responsible attitude and actions, correct the wrong practices and maintain the multilateral trade system and the overall situation of the trade and economic relationship” between the countries.
The ITC voted July 14 to affirm the Commerce Department's earlier determination of material injury to the U.S. tire manufacturing industry, putting the anti-dumping and countervailing duties set in June by Commerce into effect.