The South African Tyre Manufacturers Conference (SATMC), representing the four tyre
manufacturers with plants in South Africa, has commended the handling of provisional tariffs
applied over the past six months to tackle alleged dumping of passenger, truck and bus tyres
from China.
SATMC Managing Executive, Nduduzo Chala, said, “As the SATMC, we believe the
imposition of the provisional duties set in September last year has been beneficial for the
sector. Over this period, we have strived to highlight the negative impacts of unfair trade
practices and opportunistic pricing within the tyre sector, which have over many years placed
the South African tyre industry’s future, investment opportunities, as well as direct and
indirect job creation, at risk.”
Chala said the local tyre industry is eagerly awaiting the final outcomes of the International
Trade Administration Commission’s (ITAC) investigation into the matter. On completion,
ITAC will submit its recommendations to Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition,
Ebrahim Patel.
“We are expecting the decision in the next 30 to 60 days. We remain confident that our case
put forward to ITAC is solid. We welcome the lapsing of the provisional payments 8 March
2023, as this means that the five-year period that typically applies to anti-dumping measures
would commence from the date of the final determination, thus giving extended relief to the
local manufacturing sector and ensuring maximum deterrence of tyre dumping into South
Africa,” said Chala.
The SATMC, which represents Bridgestone Southern Africa, Continental Tyre South Africa,
Goodyear South Africa and Sumitomo Rubber South Africa, applied to ITAC for relief
against unfairly traded tyre imports from China in late 2021. ITAC initiated its investigation
on 31 January 2022 and subsequently introduced provisional payments of 38.33 percent ad
valorem on the respective tariff classifications in September 2022. These were in place from
09 September 2022 until 08 March 2023.
“As the SATMC, we remain committed to ensuring fair competition in the domestic tyre
market and will continue to strive for its growth and competitiveness in order to play a role in
addressing our unemployment crisis and protecting the economy,” said Chala.
“We thank the Commission for their professionalism in managing this delicate matter and
appreciate the seriousness that ITAC’s expert members are applying to this complex matter.
We look forward to further pronouncements in the near future,” he added.
