On May 7 the EU Commission implemented Regulation 2018-163 imposing a provisional anti-dumping duty on imports of certain pneumatic tyres - new or re-treaded, and of rubber - a kind used for buses and lorries, from the People’s Republic of China.
This anti-dumping legislation, while necessary to ensure the sustainability of the European tyre manufacturing industry, is causing difficulty for many small Irish wholesalers and retailers, some who buy directly from China.
The regulation has imposed an additional charge of between €52,85 and €82.17 per tyre for all Chinese imports (depending on the individual brand ) from May 7, 2018 for six months until a final decision is taken by the Commission’s anti-dumping committee as to the final costs and timing of implementation. The charges have resulted in increases for some companies of between 80 and 100 per cent.
Speaking on the difficulties for members, ITIA president Paddy Murphy is worried for members who currently have stocks of Chinese tyres. "The charges announced recently are due be applied retroactively which means businesses will face significant cashflow difficulties if they receive a significant bill for tyres already sold. Also, there is no certainty on the date for retroactive charges which means our members are even afraid to sell tyres they already have in stock as they are not sure at what price to charge."
The regulation has resulted in companies cancelling orders from China and now there is concern at finding replacement stock as European manufacturers are at full capacity. This has the potential to drive up costs in the long term.
Murphy added: "Our members are likely to have to increase prices in light of this regulation and unfortunately this will have a knock-on effect for many Irish road haulage and public transport companies, which in turn will ultimately impact the consumer. To mitigate this as best we can, we are urging the EU Commission to consider the impact that this regulation will have on the competitiveness of Irish SMEs when deliberating on applying these charges retroactively."
