Final quarter doldrums for ETRMA member replacement tyre sales

A positive first half of 2022 gave way to an increasingly bleak picture for replacement tyre sales according to overall figures published today by European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers’ Association (ETRMA) members. Overall this meant replacement consumer tyre sales were 2 per cent down on 2021. Commercial replacement tyre sales remained largely flat, except for the agricultural tyre market, which was down more than a fifth (-22 per cent), having been in contraction all year. Quarter four saw double-digit percentage falls versus the fourth quarter of 2021 as the effects of war in Ukraine, including spiralling energy prices and a continental cost of living crisis, bit. The European replacement tyre segment’s first half of the year had been relatively buoyant, with double-digit growth in replacement truck and bus tyres the highlight.

Adam McCarthy, ETRMA’s secretary general, said, “Last year was characterised by two contrasting half-year results for European tyre manufacturers. We saw a positive trend in the first six months for Replacement Consumer tyres with 7.4 per cent growth compared to 2021, combined with +10.3 per cent for Truck and Bus tyres. However, it turned into a challenging second half of the year.”

The overall replacement consumer tyre segment saw a decline of two per cent in 2022 compared to 2021, with a decrease of 10.1 per cent in the last six months. The replacement truck and bus tyre market remained stable (+1 per cent), despite a sharp decline of 8.2 per cent in the second half. A similar pattern was followed also by moto tyres, whose sales remained stable (+0 per cent), despite a 11 per cent decline in the last quarter.

Agricultural tyres saw negative figures throughout the year, resulting in a decline of 22 per cent as overall year result.

McCarthy continued, “There is no doubt the war in Ukraine, and the subsequent increase in energy prices and higher cost of living, have impacted the industry’s replacement tyre sales in 2022”.

In original equipment (OE) tyres, year-end results are more positive with an increase of consumer tyres sales of +3.4 per cent and of +4.7 per cent for truck and bus. Compared to 2019, truck and bus OE tyre sales show an increase of +6.8 per cent. OE consumer tyres remain below pre-Covid levels (-26 per cent).