Global tyre sales slow in October according to Michelin

ERJ staff report (DS)

Paris - Michelin has updated its website with tyre market data for the month of October. The new data from October shows near-universal declines in demand outside Asia.

Michelin said the total European OE market for car tyres in the ten months to October 2008 was down by 2.0 percent, while the year-on-year figure for October dropped by a massive 21.3 percent. The site gives only percentage changes, not absolute numbers. The North American market continued its downtrend, with the equivalent figures showing a decline of 13.6 percent for the ten-month period and a year-on-year decrease in October of 17.6 percent.

In the replacement business, the decline in Europe accelerated in October, with the ten-month figures showing a fall of 4.2 percent and the one-month figure down by 9.9 percent. In North America, the replacement market fell by 3.9 percent in the first ten months, exacerbated by a decline in October of 11.9percent.

Chinese replacement sales were a single bright spot, with the increase in the year to date running at 19.4 percent.

In radial truck OE sales, Europe's growth appears to have halted. The first ten months saw an increase of 7.3 percent, although October's sales fell by 11.4 percent year on year. The appalling decline in North American truck OE sales has continued, with sales in the first ten months down by 15.8 percent, matched by a fall in October of 15.6 percent.

The Brazilian market continued to boom with sales up by 19.7 percent in the year to date, although the growth rate in the month of October fell to 13.0 percent. It was a similar story in China, with sales up by 8.8 percent in the year to date and by 9.7 percent in September alone. Japanese OE sales were also strong, showing a growth of 20.1 percent in the year to date, although the monthly growth in October was just 1.3 percent.

Truck replacement tyres moved to negative growth in October. European truck tyre markets fell by 4.5 percent in the first ten months, made worse by a 11.8 percent decline in October. North America fell by 5.7 percent in the year to October, and 12.4 percent in the year-on-year figure. In Brazil, a year-on-year fall of 10.6 percent slowed the ten-month figure growth to 23.0 percent. Asian replacment markets were strong, with China showing 11.8 percent growth in the year to October, consistent with 12.8 percent in the most recent month. Japanese truck tyre sales fell sharply in October. The 31.1 percent decline bringing the year-to-date figure to a marginal growth of just 0.2 percent.

This is an external link and should open in a new window. If the window does not appear, please check your pop-up blocking software. ERJ is not responsible for the content of external sites.

Press release from Michelin