Forbes.com: Tire Trade Dispute Rolls On
Washington, D.C., partner Elliot Feldman, leader of Baker Hostetler's international trade practice, was quoted in an August 18, 2009, Forbes.com article, "Tire Trade Dispute Rolls On."
According to the article, one of China's largest tire manufacturers, Giti Tire, risks losing millions of dollars in revenue if the current dispute over Chinese imports to the United States is not resolved in its favor. At issue is whether tires for cars and light trucks like the ones Giti sells to U.S. corporations and consumers are flooding the market in a way that "disrupts" domestic production. In April, the United Steelworkers union formally complained that 5,000 jobs have been lost since 2004 as a result, according to the article.
The U.S. mechanism for dealing with such filings is to refer them first to the International Trade Commission (ITC). The divided panel in June recommended imposing sliding tariffs on tires imported from China that would start at 55 percent the first year, drop to 45 percent for the second year out and 35 percent for the third. Currently, imports like these face a 4 percent tax, according to the article. President Obama has until September 17 to restrain Chinese imports through tariffs or, alternatively, to address the steelworkers' employment concerns through other means, like retraining programs.
The president is juggling myriad interests, according to Feldman. During his tenure George W. Bush rejected five cases like this, but Obama, who got critical support from labor in his 2008 campaign, has signaled a break with his predecessor. In July, 10 U.S. senators asked the president to accept the ITC's tariff recommendation. If Obama needs those senators' votes later this year, say, to pass his health care reform package, he might be willing to acquiesce to their wishes now. One way or another, executive-branch action is a must. "There's going to be a remedy," Feldman said. "The question is how severe it will be."
Click to read the full article on Forbes.com.