Indian Tyre Market Grows 8.3 per cent

The Indian tyre industry has grown at a rate of 8.3 per cent over the last decade, mainly fuelled by strong growth in the domestic car industry, according to research and markets. A new report from the analysts concludes that although the replacement market has driven the industry, the OE market has also seen robust growth over the last couple of years.

Confirming these findings, Apollo Tyres recently posted third quarter results showing a 7.74 per cent rise in net profits to £2,060,000 for the quarter ended 31 December. In response, Apollo shares were trading at 253.90 rupees, up 1.56 per cent.

The industry is highly capital intensive, requiring around 4 billion rupees to set up a radial plant with a capacity of 1.5 million tyres, and around 1.5 – 2 million to construct a crossply plant of the same capacity, research and markets reports. The Indian industry is dominated by a few main players. MRF, Apollo Tyres, JK Industries and Ceat all enjoy more than 70 per cent of the total market share.