The Thai tire industry faced a structural shift in 2026: on one hand, global demand for electric vehicle tires drove steady growth in passenger car tire exports; on the other hand, truck and bus tires encountered high anti-dumping tariffs in key markets, causing a significant drop in export volumes.
The dual blow of electrification benefits and trade barriers is forcing the Thai tire industry to accelerate strategic adjustments.
EV Tire Demand Boosts Export Value
Latest data from the Thai Trade Policy and Strategy Office (TPSO) shows that Thailand's passenger car tire exports reached $3.88 billion in 2025, a year-on-year increase of 2.1%.Growth momentum mainly comes from the rapid expansion of the global electric vehicle market.
EV-specific tires are typically sold at 1.2 to 1.5 times the price of traditional tires, significantly increasing the unit value of exports.
TPSO pointed out that Thailand is leveraging its status as a globally leading natural rubber production base and its well-developed automotive supply chain to actively advance towards becoming a regional electric vehicle tire production center.
US Market Faces Tariff Divergence
The United States is the largest export market for Thai tires, with exports to the US totaling approximately $2 billion in 2025.
However, the anti-dumping tax rates imposed by the US on tires of different specifications vary significantly: the tax rate for Thai small car tires is 3.16%, still competitive; while the rate for large car tires reaches as high as 30.36%, far exceeding the 15% tariff level for Japanese products.
This led to a 15% year-on-year decline in passenger car tires imported from Thailand in Q1 2026, while truck and bus tires plummeted by 24%.
Some Japanese tire brands have considered moving their large tire production lines back to Japan to avoid high tariffs.
Multiple Countries Initiate Dual Investigations, Commercial Vehicle Tires Become "Heavily Impacted"
The trade blockade facing the Thai tire industry extends far beyond the United States.
The Eurasian Economic Union launched an anti-dumping investigation against Thai truck and bus tires in November 2025, preliminarily determining the dumping margin at 24.17%.
Brazil also issued the final ruling of the second anti-dumping sunset review at the end of 2025, deciding to continue levying anti-dumping duties on Thai tires for five years at approximately $1.35 per kilogram.
It is worth noting that these sanction measures are highly concentrated on commercial vehicle tires with rim diameters of 17.5 to 24.5 inches, reflecting main importing countries' vigilance against the rapid expansion of the Thai truck tire market share.
Nine Measures to Address Challenges
Facing the escalation of trade barriers, Thailand's TPSO has proposed nine policy measures, including raising inspection standards for EV tires, promoting cooperation between tire factories and EV factories, utilizing free trade agreements to expand into emerging markets, etc.
Meanwhile, localized production capacity of Chinese tire companies represented by Zhongce Rubber, Linglong Tire, and Tongyong Shares is rapidly expanding in Thailand. Tongyong Shares' Thailand Phase II project, with an investment of 1.884 billion yuan, has become a typical case of localization.
These Chinese-funded enterprises, on one hand, help Thailand consolidate its position as a tire manufacturing center, while on the other hand, they face potential risks related to origin certification and EU anti-circumvention investigations.
In the future, whether the Thai tire industry can break through in the wave of electrification will depend on the outcome of localization innovation and the game of global trade rules.
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