Nexen Tire reports record annual sales level

Seoul – Nexen Tire has reported record-high annual turnover for 2023, at KRW 2.7 trillion (€1.9 billion), up 4.0% year-on-year on the prior-year level.

Operating profit for the 12-month period came in at KRW186.7 billion, though Nexen Tire did not include a figure for percentage change versus 2022.

While sales by major region all grew evenly in OE, the group said replacement markets showed “relatively slow improvement due to delay of consumption recovery in major regions.”

In particular, Nexen said the proportion of sales from its regional distribution centres increased 20% year-on-year during 2023, as it continued expansion of distribution base before establishing a plant in US.

For the fourth quarter, Nexen reported a 487% increase in operating income to KRW 64 billion, on 3.4% lower sales of KRW 678 billion, the company announced 31 Jan.

Breaking down the markets, Nexen said its largest market in 2023 was Europe, with a 37% share, followed by the US and Canada with a 27% share.

Korea held a 17% share of the total sales while the remailing 19% were from the rest of the world.

Looking ahead, Nexen Tire posted a target to grow sales by 7.4% year-on-year, to KRW2.9 trillion in 2024.

The Korean tire maker expects ‘modest demand recovery’ in 2024 through de-stocking activities which started in the second half of 2023 and the anticipation of gradual fall in interest rates.