7 Countries, 17 Factories Named! US Tightens Tire Containment on China

The US trade restrictions on Chinese tires are escalating from "sniping" to "global sweep".

On September 14, the United Steelworkers (USW) wrote to the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), formally requesting a global safeguard investigation on all categories of imported tires under Section 201 of the Trade Act of 1974. Unlike previous anti-dumping and countervailing duty cases or special safeguards targeting individual countries, this investigation covers passenger tires, truck and bus tires, off-road tires, and aircraft tires, regardless of origin—tire factories established by Chinese enterprises overseas are explicitly included in the scope of the crackdown for the first time.

Overseas Factory Building Route Named

USW explicitly named them in the letter: Since 2013, Chinese enterprises have built 17 new tire factories in 7 countries including Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Morocco, Serbia, Thailand, and Vietnam, leading to a long-term surge in US tire imports between 2021 and 2025. The highest increase in tires exported to the US from some transit countries reached 429%.

This is the core strategy for Chinese tire enterprises going overseas over the past decade: "building factories overseas, bypassing barriers." The potency of Section 201 lies in its low threshold; there is no need to prove unfair trade practices, only that import growth is a substantial cause of industry injury to initiate it. Once implemented, it will be a global safeguard measure, and Chinese-funded overseas bases and local exports will be "swept up in one net".

Excuse is "Industry Crisis", Core is Trade Protection

Data listed by USW shows US domestic tire production has declined by about 40% since 2000, and factory closures in the past two years have led to over 6,000 union members losing their jobs. However, it is worth noting that the US tire market itself suffers from weak demand; the US Tire Manufacturers Association predicts shipments will drop 1.8% year-on-year in 2026, while import volume in the first seven months of this year has already declined by 3.9% year-on-year.

History will not forget that the 2009 tire special safeguard case and the 2014 passenger car tire "anti-dumping and countervailing" cases were all initiated by USW. This time is merely a repeat of the same script.

Shadow of Triple Barriers Emerges

If this Section 201 investigation is filed, the US will form a triple trade barrier architecture of "Section 232 Tariffs + Section 301 Tariffs + Section 201 Safeguard Measures". Coupled with new regulations such as the US Customs strengthening Importer of Record (IOR) verification and deep origin tracing effective September 18, compliance and cost pressures for exports to the US will rise comprehensively.

Of course, currently it is only a union application, still requiring USTR evaluation, ITC industry injury investigation, and presidential ruling, with uncertainties existing. But the signal is clear: the era of regarding "changing origin" as an all-purpose risk avoidance solution is coming to an end. For Chinese tire enterprises deeply globalized, only technical upgrades and deep localization are the long-term strategies to navigate trade barriers. Whether the USTR files the case in the next 30 days is worth the close attention of the entire industry.