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Johannesburg - Government has been asked to hike import duty on tyres in response to the dumping of cheap tyres, especially from China.
The number of legally imported tyres has doubled over the past eight years, while Chinese imports have increased tenfold.
Local tyre manufacturers and the National Union of Metalworkers (Numsa) are concerned about the impact of the dumping on the local industry as well as the safety dangers it presents.
Four tyre manufacturers - Bridgestone (Firestone), Continental, Dunlop en Goodyear - together with Numsa have recently launched a campaign to highlight the safety concerns of cheap imported tyres to the taxi industry.
According to the manufacturers, the risk is biggest for new, heavier Toyota Quantum taxis, issued with 15-inch tyres. Taxi owners replace the tyres with 14-inch tyres because they are cheaper. This is apparently extremely dangerous because the thinner tyres can't carry the weight.
The cheaper tyres are also threatening the livelihood of local manufacturers, already under pressure due to a 35% drop in demand due to the slump in the local car industry.
All four manufacturers have plans to cut their combined labour force of 7 000 by between 15% to 25%.
The manufacturers say the dumping of Chinese tyres is on the increase. China has hiked its manufacturing capacity to produce tyres for 275m vehicles a year, but the country only has 30m cars on its own roads.
While the SA Bureau of Standards requires manufacturers to conform to standards and undergo tests, imported tyres do not have to comply.
Irwin Jim, regional secretary of Numsa, says the union and manufacturers have asked the government to hike import duties on tyres to the maximum allowed by the World Trade Organisation.
Currently duties of 25% are levied on industrial vehicles, with 30% payable on passenger vehicles. The WTO allows a maximum tariff of 30%.
However, the manufacturers and the union doubt the reported import prices and the SA Revenue Service has reportedly launched an investigation into alleged fraud in the importation of tyres.
- Sake24.com
For more business stories in Afrikaans, visit Sake24.com.