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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Government Probes Tire Industry Tactics

Compiled From Wire Services

The U.S. Justice Department confirmed Wednesday it is looking into possible anticompetitive practices in the tire industry.

The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. disclosed the probe in a quarterly filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Akron-based tiremaker said it was cooperating with a Justice Department subpoena, issued in April by antitrust investigators in the Cleveland office.

Justice Department spokeswoman Gina Talamona in Washington confirmed that an investigation was under way but would not disclose any details.

“It’s an ongoing look at the industry,” she said. “I can’t get into it.”

It was not immediately clear whether the investigation centered on contracts for original-equipment tires, which are negotiated directly with automobile manufacturers, or on prices for replacement tires.

“It’s an industrywide investigation of all companies that manufacture passenger tires or truck tires in the U.S.,” Goodyear spokesman John Perduyn said Wednesday.