US is 'blaming China for its decreasing profits', says Chinese minister

Fu Ziying, Chinese deputy commerce minister, said at a news conference on Wednesday that a U.S. complaint about China's tire exports smacks of protectionism and appealed to Washington to refrain from taking actions that might harm relations.

The government of President Barack Obama is deciding what action to take after the U.S. International Trade Commission ruled in June that increased imports of Chinese tires were harming American tire producers. Moreover, Washington has launched a series of investigations into whether Chinese exporters were dumping goods including wooden bedroom furniture, honey, candles, gift boxes, industrial chemicals and fresh garlic.

According to the United Steelworkers, Chinese tire exports to the United States more than tripled in the 2004-08 period to 41 million tires a year. The union that brought the latest case said that led to the loss of 5,100 American jobs and another 3,000 jobs could be lost this year. Besides, the union is urging Obama to cap imports of Chinese tires at 21 million per year.

However, Fu said that while Chinese tire exports to the United States increased, profits for U.S. tire producers doubled over the same period. "So we can conclude that China's exports of tire products to the United States posed no material injury to U.S. tire makers," he said.

Fu also added that the case was prompted by the financial problems suffered by U.S. auto and tire producers due to the country's economic crisis. "They are blaming China or Chinese products for their decreasing profits," Fu said.