Today's EU trade update was dominated by the entry into force of significant new anti-dumping measures on new pneumatic tyres from China and Türkiye. The measures, targeting tyres for both passenger cars and commercial vehicles, include duties of up to 45.3% on Chinese imports. This major trade defence action accounted for over 500 of the day's regulatory changes and signals a new focus of enforcement activity following last week's concentration on the steel sector.
The themes
After a period of intense focus on the iron and steel sector following the half-year transition, today's activity marks a decisive shift towards the automotive supply chain. A single, major trade defence action targeting rubber products—specifically, tyres—was the overwhelming theme, accounting for nearly all of the day's 598 detected changes. The implementation was highly detailed, comprising hundreds of new measures and associated conditions, indicating a complex enforcement regime with numerous company-specific duty rates.
Headline items
Today's update loaded and activated a significant package of trade defence measures on new pneumatic tyres:
-
Duties on Chinese Tyres: New anti-dumping duties are now in effect for new tyres from China for passenger cars (HS 4011100000) and for buses or lorries (HS 4011201000). Implemented via Regulation (EU) R1540/26, the measures consist of 258 exporter-specific rates for car tyres and 236 for truck tyres, with the highest rate reaching 45.300%.
-
Measures on Turkish Tyres: Concurrent new trade defence measures were introduced on the same categories of tyres originating from Türkiye. These actions are based on Decision D0142/96 and also took effect today.
This coordinated action involved the loading of over 520 records related to trade defence, including 393 new requirements and conditions, underscoring the administrative complexity of the new regime.
Coming into force
The most significant development today is that the new anti-dumping duties on tyres from China and Türkiye are now active as of today, 8 July 2026. Importers will need to account for these new duties immediately.
Beyond the tyre measures, a number of other changes also took effect today, including routine updates to entry prices and conditions for various agricultural products, primarily affecting edible fruits and nuts (Chapter 45), fertilisers (Chapter 31), and edible vegetables (Chapter 07).
What to watch
The immediate impact of these duties will be felt by importers and distributors of tyres sourced from China and Türkiye. The highly granular nature of the measures, with hundreds of specific rates for different exporters, necessitates careful review of sourcing and pricing strategies to ensure compliance. This action marks one of the most significant new trade defence investigations to conclude this year and shifts the EU's regulatory spotlight from steel to the automotive sector.