Tyres Europe has called for faster EU trade defence action and continued monitoring after duties take effect, citing changes in the origins of truck and bus tyre imports.
In its 5 October position-paper summary, the association urges the European Commission to connect monitoring, industry intelligence, investigations and enforcement earlier. It also proposes systematic monitoring after measures are adopted, alongside dialogue with European manufacturers.
According to Tyres Europe, Thailand and Vietnam’s combined share of truck and bus tyre imports into the EU27 and UK increased from below 3% in 2017 to nearly 61% in January–May 2026. The association uses the shift to argue that trade flows can change faster than the policy response.
It also wants closer coordination between trade defence, the Foreign Subsidies Regulation, investment screening and procurement. These are association proposals, rather than announced changes to EU policy.
For manufacturers, importers and wholesalers, the distinction matters: a call for stronger monitoring does not itself change the duties applying to a shipment. Changing import origins alone also does not establish circumvention or unfair trade.
The paper follows TNM’s coverage of an Oxford Economics study, which estimated that imports supplied half of newly fitted commercial-vehicle tyres in the EU in 2024. That calculation includes tyres fitted to imported vehicles.
The two figures measure different things. The earlier study examines imports’ share of EU fitments. The position paper examines supplying countries’ shares of truck and bus tyre imports across the EU27 and UK. The 61% figure therefore describes the composition of imports, not the overall tyre market.
Tags: Tyres Europe, EU trade defence, tyre imports, truck tyres, bus tyres, Thailand, Vietnam, tyre manufacturing, trade monitoring, commercial tyres
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