US replacement tyre prices rise

Dublin, Ireland -- Information broker Research and Markets has announced the addition of Tires in the United States to its offering of market research reports. The 96-page report was originally published by UK researchers Mintel in November 2005.

In the report summary, the authors say, "The $15 billion U.S. replacement tire market has grown 34% since 1999. Volume sales benefit from an automobile fleet that is larger and older than any in U.S. history. However, the real growth in the market is increases in spend per tire, with average price per tire rising from $59 in 1999 to $76 in 2005. Increase in prices stems from a variety of drivers:

• An increasing number of car enthusiasts
• An increasing percentage of light trucks in the automobile fleet
• Increasing percentages of sports and luxury vehicles in the automobile fleet
• Increasing sales of high performance tyres
• An increasing number of 45-64 year olds (who are more likely to own sports and luxury cars), who spend more per tyre than any other age group
• OE equipment moving upscale (consumers often replace the OE with the same tyre)
• Growth in the number of households with incomes above $75K
• The introduction of low-end performance tires, making high-performance tyres accessible to a wider audience

Looking forward through 2010, say the researchers, all of these factors can be expected to continue. In particular increases in the number of SUVs in the US automobile fleet, and a wider availability of all-season high-performance tyres should drive average price per tyre higher.

If the market is to see more rapid growth, suppliers and retailers must persuade consumers that a higher-performance tyre is a safer tyre. Given the availability entry-level all-season performance tire, this message, if accepted by the public, could result in several years of 5-10% annual growth.

The 96-page report is available for Euro 2495 from R&M

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Report Summary from Research and Markets