Annual reviews of tariff rates assigned to passenger and light truck tires from Thailand and South Korea are underway and the preliminary stages in both investigations indicate tires from both regions would continue to be subject to tariffs.
The reviews are being conducted separately and rates from one region aren’t influenced by those assessed in another country. In both cases, authorities are looking at the import data and weighing anti-dumping margins for products from July 1, 2022, through June 30, 2023.
And as just a bit of history, tariffs were initially assessed on passenger and light truck tires from Thailand, South Korea and Taiwan in 2021. (There initially was another concurrent investigation of dumped tires from Vietnam, but that investigation was terminated and the tariffs weren’t ordered.)
Records show requests for an annual review of the tariff rates from Taiwan for the 2022-2023 timeframe were rescinded. (Companies can request a review, but they also have a window to rescind that request, and that is common in these investigations.)
Preliminary rates for Thailand
Here’s a look at the preliminary anti-dumping rates that would be charged on PLT tires from Thailand. (In 2023, MTD data shows 41 million consumer tire units were imported into the U.S. from Thailand.)
Prinx Chengshan Tire (Thailand) Co. Ltd. 4.95%
Sumitomo Rubber (Thailand) Co. Ltd. 3.82%
These companies weren’t selected for their own individual reviews, so they’ll be charged a weighted average of the Prinx and Sumitomo rates:
Bridgestone Co. Ltd. 3.93%
Bridgestone Tire Manufacturing (Thailand) Co. Ltd. 3.93%
S.R. Tyres Co. Ltd. 3.93%
Thai Bridgestone Co. Ltd. 3.93%
Vee Tyre & Rubber Co. Ltd. 3.93%
Because companies have the right to request a rate review each year, we can see in Thailand that this preliminary rate for Prinx Chengshan would be slightly higher than the 4.52% charged after the review of 2021-2022 data. At the same time, it would be a bit of a reprieve for Sumitomo Rubber and the 6.16% previously assessed.
Preliminary rates for South Korea
Here’s a look at the preliminary anti-dumping rates that would be charged on PLT tires from South Korea. (In 2023 MTD data showed South Korea supplied 17% fewer passenger and light truck tires to the U.S. market than 2022, with a total of 13.9 million consumer tires.)
Hankook Tire Mfg. Co. Ltd. 4.75%
Nexen Tire Corp. 3.63%
Kumho Tire Co. Inc. 4.19%
Compared to the prior year review, all three of these tiremakers would see a slight decrease in tariff rates if these preliminary figures are made final. The 2021-2022 review charged these rates to these tiremakers: Hankook 6.30%; Nexen 4.29%; and Kumho 5.40%.
These rates for 2022-2023 will undergo another round of review before they’re final, and the companies will have an opportunity to review the calculations to assert if there might be any errors.
