The EU is imposing duties of up to 45 per cent on Chinese tyres

Brussels – Definitive anti-dumping duties on Chinese imports of tyres for passenger cars and light lorries were imposed on 7 July by the European Commission with a regulation. The measure comes after an investigation launched by the Commission in November showed that tyre imports from Beijing were entering the EU at dumped prices—that is, too low compared to European prices and therefore unfair. In response, the Berlaymont building imposed definitive duties ranging from 4.3 up to 45.3 per cent, which came into force yesterday (8 July) on a non-retroactive basis. 

The survey covered a wide variety of rubber tyre types and sizes with a load index of less than 121 (the load index is a numerical code on the tyre sidewall indicating the maximum weight that each wheel can bear). In the tyre sector—an EU industry that employs over 80,000 people across 14 Member States—data from the Commission show that in 2024, tyre consumption in the EU stood at around 330 million units, representing a market worth over €18 billion. Furthermore, in the same year, there were nearly 93 million units of Chinese imports, worth over €2.5 billion and accounting for 28 per cent of the market. 

It is easy to see this decision as another step in a wider standoff with Beijing that began over two years ago. In October 2024, the Berlaymont triggered duties to be applied to Chinese electric cars sold in Europe, on top of the 10 per cent tariffs already in force. The new tariffs—imposed as a counterbalancing measure against Beijing’s unfair subsidies to its electric car manufacturers—applied to vehicles produced by SAIC, Geely, BYD, and Tesla. Meanwhile, in January this year, the European Commission issued a series of guidelines requiring Chinese exporters to submit commitment offers of their prices.  The Chinese Ministry of Commerce immediately hailed this document as the end of the dispute, while the Commission in Brussels clarified that these were merely “guidelines” and “nothing more.”