Schumer: Future Growth At Buffalo's Goodyear Dunlop Motorcycle Tire Plant Threatened By Chinese Trade Barriers

Unfair Regulations Could Put Brakes On Harley-Davidson's Motorcycle Sales

December 10, 2007 -- Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer revealed that future growth at Buffalo’s local Goodyear Dunlop motorcycle tire plant could suffer from unfair Chinese trade barriers that are restricting the sale of classic American-made Harley-Davidson motorcycles in the increasingly prosperous country. Despite the exploding popularity of Harleys among China’s consumer class, the Chinese government is stifling the company’s ability to sell its products in the lucrative market.

Schumer today warned that the trade barriers could stymie future expansion at Buffalo’s own Goodyear Dunlop motorcycle tire plant which produces tires for Harley-Davidson and employees over 1,300 local workers.

To protect good-paying Buffalo jobs and encourage future growth at the local Goodyear Dunlop plant, Schumer blasted the Chinese government and called on U.S. trade and commerce officials to seek the removal of trade barriers that are effectively preventing the iconic American motorcycle company from competing in the country. Schumer already sent a letter last week urging U.S. government trade officials to raise the issue with their Chinese counterparts in talks that began last week in Beijing.

“The Chinese market should be a hog heaven for U.S. motorcycle companies, but China’s unfair trade practices are slamming the brakes on Harley sales, which in turn, could jeopardize good-paying jobs here in Buffalo,” Senator Schumer said. “Harley-Davidson and Goodyear Dunlop are classic American companies and should be rewarded for keeping manufacturing jobs here in Buffalo, not punished by China’s attempts to control the market. To ensure the plant here in Buffalo can continue to grow and expand, we need to guarantee that American-made motorcycles are not prevented from participating in the Chinese market.”

Despite a two-year presence in the Chinese market, Harley-Davidson’s sales in the country are virtually non-existent due to municipal regulations that limit or even ban heavy-duty motorcycle use in urban areas. The rules make it extremely difficult for consumers to utilize motorcycles that they purchase. Furthermore, the rules are just another example of the arbitrary, non-tariff barriers erected by China that have the effect of unfairly limiting access to the Chinese market. Such actions call into question China’s compliance with its obligations as a member of the World Trade Organization.

In Buffalo, the local Goodyear Dunlop plant, which employs over 1,300 area workers, is responsible for producing 100 percent of the motorcycles tires for used by Harley-Davidson. The giant tire company is the nation’s sole producer of motorcycle tires, and forty percent of the tires made at Buffalo plant are sent to Harley-Davidson.

Schumer today emphasized that a financially hampered Harley-Davidson company could have a negative ripple effect on future growth at Buffalo’s Goodyear Dunlop plant. “Harley-Davidson and Goodyear Dunlop are a match made in heaven and we need to guarantee that foreign trade barriers don’t come between them,” added Schumer.

With U.S. government officials meeting with their Chinese counterparts in talks last week in Beijing, Schumer sent a letter to U.S. trade officials calling for them to make tearing down the trade barriers afflicting Harley-Davidson a top priority.

In a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Susan C. Schwab and Secretary of Commerce Carlos M. Gutierrez, Schumer said China should take a visible step towards eliminating the barriers at the upcoming meeting of the U.S.-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade (JCCT). This round of the annual meetings is set to wrap up this week in Beijing between U.S. and Chinese officials.

Schumer today pledged to continue pushing U.S. trade officials to force the Chinese to open up their domestic market to Harley-Davidson in an effort to fuel future growth at both the motorcycle manufacturer, and at Goodyear Dunlop plants, like Buffalo’s.

Milwaukee-based Harley-Davidson employs 8,500 workers at its plants in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Missouri. Last week, Harley-Davidson experienced a planned shut down of operations at its plants in those three states due to flat sales.

Source: Senator Charles E. Schumer

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