Kenda moving U.S. order production out of China

Taiwan's Kenda Rubber Industrial Co. Ltd. is transferring some of the production for the U.S. at its China factories to other Asian areas amid tariff angst.

"Kenda has many tire manufacturing facilities in Asia, we can offer productions from different factories to cover demands from customers in a different part of the world," Chairman Jimmy Yang told European Rubber Journal, a sister publication of Tire Business.

The company will supply its tires from "wherever it fits to meet our goal of offering best service and quality products to customers," Mr. Yang said.

According to reports in the Chinese press, Kenda plans to move production of its commercial tires to Vietnam, bicycle tires to Taiwan, Vietnam and Indonesia, and motorcycle tires to Vietnam and Taiwan.Chinese production of U.S. orders is worth about $65 million annually, according to reporting in May by China Rubber, a biweekly affiliated to China Rubber Industry Association.

Kenda's China production for U.S. orders of passenger and SUV tires will be moved to Kenda's second Vietnam plant once a $48 million expansion project there is finished, the company said.