No free trade issue.

The recent International Trade Commission decision that the domestic tire industry has been injured by Chinese imports probably won't bring back any of the near 4,400 tire manufacturing jobs shed by U.S. manufacturers since 2004. Chances are it won't save any of the scheduled axings of another 2,400 workers by the end of this year, but it could.

President Obama will have to make his decision in September on the ITC findings and the remedy for the surge in Chinese imports. The ITC recommends a tax that would be 55% of the price of tires for passenger cars and light trucks for the first year, 45% for the second year and 35% for the third year.

This would definitely increase tire pricing across the board and may give domestic manufacturers something to think about when deciding product mix. The myth about the Chinese tires imported here is that the majority are the smallest sizes, tire manufacturing the domestic producers abandoned.

Trade figures just don't bear that out. In 2008, the U.S. imported $200.5 million worth of tires manufactured in China of less than 14". In 2005, we imported nearly $120 million worth of the same tires. The increases in the larger tire sizes are more substantial. In 2005, the U.S. imported $157.7 million worth of 14" Chinese tires, while last year the figure was $428.5 million. In 2005, Chinese imports of 16" tires totaled $86.8 million, while that figure rose to $362.8 million last year.

The silence of the domestic tire industry regarding this issue is interesting. They are actually coming off as disinterested. When someone comes in and starts taking big chunks out of your market and you're noncommittal about a possible remedy to save manufacturing jobs, maybe you should check your business plan. This is not a free trade issue.

This ITC finding is a result of triggers set up in China's application to be a member of the World Trade Organization. Many member governments, recognizing the potentially unfair manufacturing advantages (too many to mention here) that China had in certain industries, attached legislation that would monitor these abuses, and offer remedies. That is exactly what the ITC has done.