The EU has announced the imposition of a maximum anti-dumping duty of 45.3% on Chinese-made tires.

Gesai Auto News: On July 7th local time, the European Union announced the final measures for the anti-dumping investigation on tires for Chinese-made passenger cars, buses and light trucks, and decided to impose anti-dumping duties officially. 

This investigation originated from a complaint submitted by the "European Coalition Against Unfair Tyre Imports" on April 7, 2025. The investigation was officially launched on May 20, 2025, and the investigation period covered from January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2024.

The EU investigation results show that during the investigation period, the consumption of passenger car and light commercial vehicle tires in the EU was approximately 336 million. Among them, the export volume of Chinese tires to the EU increased by over 35 million, reaching 93 million. The share of Chinese tire exporters in the EU market rose from 18% to 28%; at the same time, the market share of local European enterprises decreased from 60% to 53%.

The EU stated that during the investigation period, the average import price of Chinese tires was 30.3 euros per piece, significantly lower than the prices of domestic products in the EU, with an average price reduction of 19%; among them, the price reduction for the three types of tires (i.e., economy tires) was the highest, reaching 34.7%.

According to the final ruling of the European Union, the anti-dumping duty rates applicable to different enterprises are as follows:

The aforementioned measures will come into effect officially on July 8th, but no retroactive tariffs will be imposed.

Among them, the South Korean tire company Hankook is an exception. Although the European Commission found that Hankook's factory in China engaged in dumping practices, it determined that the damage caused to the European tire industry was relatively minor. During the investigation, Hankook tires were classified as mid-to-high-end products or as affordable alternatives to high-end tires; their average price was significantly higher than that of other Chinese suppliers. Therefore, Hankook only needs to pay a 4.3% tariff.

However, other Chinese tire manufacturers have been hit even harder. Based on the average price of 30.3 euros per tire in China, a 24.4% tax rate would increase the import cost by approximately 7.4 euros. If calculated at the highest tax rate of 45.3%, the increase would be about 13.7 euros.

The economic tire market segment will experience the most significant pressure. Roland Berger partner Maximilian Wegner told German "Automobilwoche": "If the tariff rate is 30%, the purchase price of Chinese-made economic tires will increase from approximately 29 euros to 38 euros." This will almost halve the price advantage of these tires compared to European manufacturers such as Pirelli or Continental.

In response to this, both the Chinese side and European importers have denied the above accusations. They warned that the EU tariffs would lead to an increase in tire prices and cause a supply shortage in the low-price market segment.