Now one of the largest tyre-producing countries in the world, China has an indisputable influence on the direction of global tyre trade. The home of both fast-growing up-and-coming brands as well as a burgeoning domestic market, this tag chronicles China’s involvement with the tyre business.
Following the news that China National Tire & Rubber Co. (CNRC), a subsidiary of China National Chemical Corporation (ChemChina), entered into a binding agreement with Edizione with respect to the purchase of 1.574 per cent of the share capital of Pirelli on 13 April, company representatives have issued a clarification that these shares are held indirectly.
Following news of the company’s plans to takeover Pirelli based on purchasing Camfin’s leading shareholding in the Italian tyre manufacturer, ChemChina has revealed that it has made a deal with Edizione Srl for an additional Pirelli stake. The latest share purchase suggests ChemChina is in the second phase of its acquisition en route to a publically stated goal of owning 65 per cent of Pirelli.
A plant for converting end of life tyre rubber into a compound suited for use in new tyres will be set up in China’s Fujian Province if the aims of a new Memorandum of Understanding are fully realised. The MoU signed between China Automobile Parts Holding Limited and Malaysia’s Sri Elastomers Sdn. Bhd. on 18 March formalises both parties’ intention to form an alliance for the commercialisation of SRI Compound. Plans call for the establishment of a joint operation in the city of Xiamen.
Sameer Africa Ltd., is planning to enter the Rwandan tyre market in the next two years, company executives told Bloomberg recently. At the same time, the company is said to be exploring the possibility of setting up a subsidiary in Nigeria. However, in light of ongoing share sale talks since last summer, this could be […]
The presence of Yokohama Rubber at the upcoming Auto Shanghai 2015 show has been confirmed. The exhibition will take place between 20 and 29 April, and the Yokohama stand will feature tyres from the company’s Advan, BluEarth, Geolandar and Neova ranges, along with Yokohama’s ‘aerodynamic tyre’, which will be displayed in China for the first time.
The Belshina tyre plant is scheduled to re-start production today (1 April 2015) after production ceased on 26 March, according to the Belarusian Independent Trade Union various (BITU), in a move that is seen as indicative of wider economic concerns and is blamed on low-cost Asian tyre imports.
Artur Mikhalap, BITU chairman, commented: “The plant stopped completely, reason unknown to me, but the thinking is the same as in most enterprises – no market. Warehouses are filled up. According to my information the plant stopped only for five days, until April 1.
After the second grand prix of the second year of Pirelli’s second three-year stint as exclusive Formula One tyre supplier, Motorsport director Paul Hembery addressed questions about its F1 programme in the ChemChina-owned era. “For us, it’s business as normal,” Hembery told motorsport magazine, Autosport. Indeed, the centrality of top-level motorsport to the manufacturer’s brand – “Motorsport for Pirelli remains key,” in Hembery’s words – is an obvious attraction to a Chinese company buying into the premium manufacturer’s market positioning.
In case you haven’t heard, as much as 65 per cent of Pirelli is in the process of being sold to ChemChina. It’s a complex plan and there’s a long road ahead, but the deal has been done and so takeover wheels are in motion (see page 28 for complete coverage of this part of the story). So what’s next? The deal can’t fail to have an impact at Pirelli, but what about the other top five tyre manufacturers and beyond? We hinted at market consolidation in this column last month, with reference to restructuring proceedings at Shandong Deruibao Tire Co., Ltd and possible contagion in China; and Pirelli CEO Marco Tronchetti Provera made the market aware of that he was planning to sell his stake within two years in January 2014. But few would have named this particular bidder and this particular timing. Now we are faced with the possibility, even the likelihood that the Pirelli/ChemChina deal is going to precipitate further micro and macro consolidation within the tyre market – even a re-shuffle of the tyre industry’s top 10.
Goodyear Tire & Rubber has announced the establishment of the company’s first research and development facility in China. The new R&D centre is located at the tyre maker’s Pulandian plant in Liaoning Province and will focus on product customisation for original equipment fitments and project support services, supplementing the core tyre technology development that takes place in Goodyear’s global innovation centres in Akron (Ohio, US) and Colmar-Berg (Luxembourg). Goodyear says the facility in China will shorten the time taken to develop high-value-added tyres, particularly for China-based vehicle manufacturers.
On 22 March 2015 Pirelli was sold to ChemChina in a move that was both broadly expected and yet surprising at the same time. Expected inasmuch as Pirelli’s top management had been hinting at an exit for the last couple of years. Surprising due to the identity of the successful bidder and because of the speed at which the acquisition appears to have been agreed. But it was not a surprise who had been in high level talks with the Chinese for around three years. Here Tyres & Accessories compiles the latest details relating to the enormously influential story and considers what the impact will be on the company itself as well as the wider market place.
Chinese tyre manufacturer Double Coin has announced plans to invest a total of 11.6 billion yuan (£1.251 billion; 1.710 billion euros; $1.87 billion) in seven companies. It is not clear which firms the company is planning to invest in, but initial indications suggest it is considering a suite of internal and domestic investments. According to a Reuters report, the Shanghai-based firm plans to raise up to 3.7 billion yuan towards funding the investments in a private placement.
Following the news that Pirelli is effectively being bought by ChemChina (the state-owned parent company of Chinese brands including Aeolus), further details – namely the implications of the transaction on the truck tyre sector – are continuing to emerge.
According to various news sources, it now looks likely that the Italian company’s truck tyre business will be merged with Aeolus Tyres (which is itself best-known for its commercial vehicle tyre products). Reuters made this claim by citing a statement from former Pirelli controlling shareholding company Camfin, which said Pirelli’s truck and industrial tyre business would be “folded into ChemChina’s listed unit Aeolus, allowing it to double its output”.
With ChemChina in talks to buy Pirelli, Tyres & Accessories presents a brief introduction to the Chinese firm
The China National Chemical Corporation (otherwise known as ChemChina) is Chinese a state-owned chemical, rubber and tyre business. Established in May 2004, ChemChina is run under the administration of SASAC (the Chinese State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission).
The first thing we have to consider is the size of the company. ChemChina is a Fortune 500 company and call itself China’s largest chemical company. Globally the firm places itself in 19th place.
News agencies are reporting China National Chemical Corporation, which names brands such as Aeolus amongst its number, is close to purchasing shares in Camfin, which own 26 per cent of Pirelli and would give ChemChina a controlling shareholding in Pirelli. For the last year or so Camfin has been owned by Russian oil firm Rosneft and a holding company of Pirelli’s chairman and chief executive, Marco Tronchetti Provera. Other significant shareholders include Italian banks Intesa Sanpaolo and UniCredit.
Michelin’s February tyre demand data shows a sequential improvement in replacement demand in most markets. With China and Brazil being the only real exceptions, basically every other showed month-on-month increases – the first positive uptick months.
The situation in China however, is somewhat bleaker. According to the Michelin tyre demand data, Chinese passenger car tyre replacement demand dropped -13 per cent from growth of +18 per cent in January. “This is a worrying indicator for broader China consumer demand”, Morgan Stanley market analysts wrote in an investor’s note data 13 March 2015.
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