The tyre business along with the rest of the automotive industry was hit hard by the effects of coronavirus. This tag brings you the latest news as it happens.
The first espisode of Metzeler’s Table Talk video, which mainly focused upon the new Metzeler Tourance Next 2, quietly disappeared from YouTube not too long ago. What’s more, there’s no longer any trace of this product on the Metzeler website. What’s going on?
Pirelli has joined its global premium-brand tyre manufacturer counterparts in announcing a significant decline in 2020 revenue, around one-fifth down year-on-year (-19.2 per cent). As you would expect, the company said the sharp contraction was due to the Covid-19 pandemic emergency. The more optimistic news for Pirelli was the relative resilience of the high-value car tyre segment, which, at -14.4 per cent, beat the overall revenue figure significantly.
Bridgestone Americas is providing a one-time, US$100 payment to all of its more than 33,000 employees in the USA who choose to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. The company is also exploring options to deploy a comparable programme to employees in Canada and Latin America as the vaccine becomes more widely available. Bridgestone is among the first major employers in its industry to initiate a financial payment to employees who decide to be vaccinated.
More motorists are booking joint MOT and service procedures and MOT failures rates are expected to increase, according to service and repair shops. Indeed, demand for combined MOT and service procedures increased almost 50 per cent last month (48%), according to BookMyGarage.com. Meanwhile, MOT-only bookings were down in February compared with February 2020
The organisers of the UK’s leading OTR equipment and tyre event have put back the Hillhead show for 12 months, following a review of the government roadmap to ease Covid-19 restrictions announced on 22 February. The QMJ Group has made the decision to postpone Hillhead by 12 months. Hillhead event director Richard Bradbury explained:
The UK new car market declined by -35.5 per cent in February as 28,282 fewer units were registered during a traditionally weak month for new vehicle uptake, according to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). The industry recorded its lowest February uptake since 1959, with 51,312 new cars registered.
Driving safety charity TyreSafe has given drivers a timely reminder to spare a thought for their vehicles’ tyres in the days and weeks before lockdown ends. Many vehicles won’t have been used much since Christmas and most of those that have are likely to have only been used for short trips. While it’s tempting to put maintenance checks on hold, TyreSafe is advising drivers to check their vehicle’s tyres during lockdown to potentially save themselves money in the long run and reduce the risk of a tyre-related incident when they do return to the roads.
The corona crisis has left its mark on Bridgestone Corporation, with the Japanese firm reporting for the 2020 fiscal year its first net loss in 69 years, a loss of 23.3 billion yen (£159.2 million). The operating result also fell significantly: While revenue decreased 14.6 per cent to 3.0 trillion yen (£20.5 billion), adjusted operating profit plummeted 35.0 per cent to 222.9 billion yen (£1.5 billion), representing a 7.4 per cent return on sales.
Against the backdrop of the global coronavirus pandemic, Michelin Group reported sales of 20.5 billion euros in 2020, down 15.2 per cent. Segment operating income was 1.9 billion euros, representing 9.2 per cent of sales. Net income amounted to 625 million euros and was thus 63.9 per cent lower than in the previous year.
Jukka Moisio is “extremely proud” the Nokian Tyres team’s response to the challenges it faced in 2020. But no amount of pride can compensate for sales and income lost due to lockdowns and other restrictions. As expected, the Finnish tyre maker reported reduced sales and earnings for the year.
Nothing holds a candle to trade fairs when it comes to meeting up and sharing experiences. This past year may have shown us what life without tyre shows looks like, but it hasn’t offered us much in the way of alternatives.
When Koelnmesse confirmed the re-rescheduled dates for The Tire Cologne as 24-26 May 2022, it invited a retread of a 2020 spat with the organisers of Bologna based auto-repair and aftermarket show Autopromotec, whose 2022 edition is scheduled for 25-28 May. Then, Koelnmesse reacted to the enforced cancellation of the scheduled 2020 edition of The Tire Cologne by setting 18-21 May as the new dates for the show. The proximity of these dates to Autopromotec 2021, which was scheduled for 26-29 May, drew a strongly worded response from Renzo Servadei, chief executive officer of Autopromotec. He compared Koelnmesse’s decision to Darwinism: “This is not the time to play “survival of the fittest”. Even in the exhibition sector, the levers of competition can never prove fatal as today, while strategies of solidarity and collaboration should be triggered.”
The concurrent Latin Tyre Expo and Latin Auto Parts Expo events have been put back until 6-8 October 2021. Writing in a letter to dated 3 Ferbruary, the events’ organiser, Latin Expo Group, explained:
It is not easy for tyre businesses to take away something positive from the past year. In retrospect, Toyo Tires came to the conclusion: “2020 was anything but a glorious year for the tyre industry. A slump in new registrations and also double-digit declines in the replacement market business. There were no dealers and no manufacturers who did not have to struggle with losses in the past year.” Nevertheless, Toyo Tires Europe is starting the new year “confidently”, according to the Germany-based European headquarters of the Japanese tyre manufacturer.
With data showing that 93 per cent of garages planned to remain open during lockdown 2.0, it is a minority view, but one Suffolk garage is appealing for another MOT extension similar to what was enacted during the first lockdown in spring 2020.
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The Motor Ombudsman
Hillhead
Promotec
Latin Expo Group
Toyo
ITV Anglia