China plans to appeal WTO tire tariffs ruling

China’s Ministry of Commerce (MofCom) said it would appeal the WTO’s endorsement of US restrictions on Chinese tire imports, the Wall Street Journal reported. Responding to a complaint filed by Beijing last September, a WTO panel ruled on Monday that the US had been within its rights to impose tariffs of up to 35% over a three-year period. President Barack Obama acted on the grounds that rising imports from China were hurting US competitors. Trade experts were not surprised by the ruling, but Beijing fears it could lead to other countries blocking Chinese exports. The Chinese government and industry officials warned last year that the tariffs could trigger large layoffs in the domestic tire industry. But MofCom’s statement focused more on how little the US has gained from the tariffs, with US tire imports rising in the last year while jobs in the tire industry have decreased.