European tire industry urges EU to toughen trade defence against market distortions

The European tire industry, represented by Tyres Europe, has called for stronger EU trade defence measures to counter structural overcapacity, state-induced market distortions, and unfair trading practices threatening the bloc’s manufacturers. In a 17 June statement, the association warned that the sector—supporting around 500,000 jobs and critical to passenger transport, freight, agriculture, and defence—faces eroding competitiveness due to a lack of a “level playing field.” Tyres Europe highlighted that existing trade defence tools often lag behind rapidly shifting global supply chains, allowing exporters to bypass investigations by redirecting production and shipments within months while EU probes drag on for years. The group cited cases where producers “front-load shipments during investigations” and later reroute exports through alternative locations, leaving European manufacturers under sustained unfair competitive pressure even after cases close. To address these challenges, Tyres Europe recommended bolstering EU trade defence investigations with additional resources and adopting a more proactive, strategic approach aligned with industrial and economic security goals. It also pushed for exploring further WTO-compatible tools to tackle systemic state-induced distortions and leveraging the EU’s foreign subsidies regulation more effectively. The association stressed that manufacturing decisions in the tire industry are long-term, capital-intensive, and highly sensitive to market predictability, noting that lost industrial capacity is extremely difficult to rebuild. Tyres Europe concluded by urging EU leaders to ensure trade defence policies evolve in step with the changing global trading environment, emphasizing that Europe must remain open to trade while equipping itself with tools to guarantee fair competition and protect industrial capabilities.