China questions US duties on Chinese truck, bus tires

A worker at a tire factory in Nantong, East China's Jiangsu province, May 8, 2010. [Photo/IC]

BEIJING - China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) Wednesday questioned the US decision to levy heavy duties on truck and bus tires from China, promising measures to defend domestic companies' rights.

The comments came after the US Department of Commerce decided to slap anti-dumping duties of up to 22.57 percent and countervailing duties of up to 65.46 percent on certain truck and bus tires imported from China.

In response to the US decision, MOC trade official Wang Hejun criticized the US investigation procedures, which he said were defective and ignored facts.

Wang said the US move had harmed the interests of China's tire industry, and urged the US to abide by the World Trade Organization rules and correct its mistakes.

US imports of truck and bus tires from China were worth about $1.5 billion in 2015, which fell to more than 1 billion dollars in the first 11 months last year, affected by the investigation, according to MOC data.