In late January, we posted to update you on recent developments in the world of OTR tires. At that time, we alerted you that Titan had joined up with the United Steel Worker's Union (USW) to protest what they thought to be the unfair pricing and over-subsidizing of imported OTR tires. At the time of our report, they had gone so far as to voice their concerns to the International Trade Commission (ITC), and the ITC had agreed to meet and discuss the issue.
That meeting of the ITC took place on January 29, with both sides of the argument stating strong cases. The thrust of the Titan/USW petition seems to be how the prevalence of foreign-made goods influences their place in the market.
“The OTR tire industry provides high-paying, high-skilled jobs with family-supporting benefits,” Stan Johnson, USW international secretary-treasurer, said at the hearing. “All of that is now at risk because of these dumped and subsidized imports from China, India and Sri Lanka" (Rubber News)Opponents of the petition argue, however, that Titan's place in the market was affected more by the overall market downturn coupled with the company's own recent business strategy missteps than by imported OTR tires. The ruling is expected to be handed down in February, and we are interested to see how the ITC interprets the data.
Do you have an opinion on this matter? Do you think that these foreign tire manufacturers are dumping their products into US and other Western markets below production costs? Or do you think that Titan and other domestic manufacturers are suffering more from the overall downturn and perhaps their own strategic blunders? Feel free to sound off in the comment section.
As always, remember that we carry a full line of OTR tires for all of your mining needs. Feel free to contact us for the best deals.
Image credit: European Rubber Journal
The post OTR Tires Tarriff: The Saga Continues appeared first on BuyBigTires.com.
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