ERJ: Rubber & tire industry in numbers

Review of the key figures and data to emerge this week from leading players in the tire & industry: 

Projects & investments

Sailun has increased a planned investment in its Cambodia tire factory: doubling the size of an expansion announced less than four months ago. It is investing €290m in the plant at Svay Rieng to increase car tire production capacity by 12m units/year. (See also New Tire Projects table above).

ContiTech is investing €82m in a new hydraulic hose plant in Aguascalientes, Mexico. The  85,000m2 unit set for operation in the second half of 2025 and is expected to employ 200 people.

Japanese group Toyoda Gosei is investing €55m to increase production capacity at two US subsidiaries: two factories, in Perryville and Indiana, belonging to TG Missouri Corp.; and TG Kentucky's (TGKY) Lebanon plant.

Trade tariffs

Chinese tire makers operating in Thailand noted a cut in US anti-dumping rates on passenger car tires originating from Thailand. Linglong and General Science said rates were lowered to 4.52%, from the initial 21.09% and 17.06%. Sentury Tire’s rate was lowered from 17.06% to 1.24% while Sumitomo Rubber (Thailand) saw its rates cut from 14.59% to 6.16%. Rates for all other Thai-based passenger car tire makers went down from 17.06% to 4.52%.

Tire business

In India, Ceat Ltd has posted third quarter earnings (EBITDA) for the down 7.8% year-on-year to INR4.25bn. The reverse came despite an 8.7% year-on-year increase in sales for three months to 30 Dec 2023, to INR29.6bn. Earnings margin stood at 14.4%, a contraction of 588 bps compared to the prior year third quarter.

Tire manufacturers’ share prices development 

Materials business

Hexpol AB has posted a 12% year-on-year increase in its 2023 adjusted earnings (EBIT) to SEK3.6bn (€318m), on sales marginally lower at SEK22bn. Operating margin improved from 14.7% in 2022 to 16.6% in 2023. Full-year sales fell in Europe by 4% year-on-year, increased “slightly” in the Americas but rose 7% in Asia.

Germany-based Wacker Chemie’s silicone business saw a 73% year-on-year decline in earnings to €236m. The silicone decline was linked primarily to lower prices, particularly for standard products, lower volume sales of speciality products and reduced plant-utilisation rates.

Sibur reported increases is sales of elastomers and 'plastics and organic synthetic products' within Russia of 8% and 11% respectively. Overall, the Russian group said it increased its share of supplies to the domestic market to 75% in 2023.

European chemicals

Amid an overall gloomy assessment for Europe’s chemicals industry, industry body Cefic noted a hint of recovery for certain sub-sectors within its November 2023 data, with EU27 chemical production about 1% above the 2022 level. A particular bright spot was synthetic rubber production, Cefic reporting a 32% year-on-year jump in output. (See graphic above)

Natural rubber

Selected NR futures price trends on major trading exchanges

Cote d’Ivoire has overtaken Vietnam to become the world’s the third biggest natural rubber producer. The west African country increased NR output by over 16% year-on-year in 2023, producing just under 1.5m tonnes, ANRPC reported. Thailand stayed at no 1 with 4.87m tonnes of production followed by Indonesia at 3.2m tonnes. Vietnam came fourth with 1.39m tonnes of production. Overall, global NR production rose 6.5% year-on-year to 15.140m tonnes last year.

Last week's figures