On 13 January, Huai’an Customs issued an administrative penalty decision to Jiangsu Hankook Tire Co., Ltd. The subject of the penalty involved 271,000 yuan (approximately £32,500, €36,900) in tax underpayment. The penalty document issued by Huai’an Customs shows that Jiangsu Hankook failed to truthfully declare the price of bonded materials during the process of declaring to the customs.
As is being reported around the world with varying levels of schadenfreude, last year UK car production reached its lowest level since 1956. A total of 775,014 cars were produced in the UK in 2022, 40.5 per cent below 2019 figures and way under half the record production of 1,971,311 achieved half a century ago. The SMMT strives to highlight the positive news within this result, and stresses that production of electric vehicles reached a new record during 2022.
On 28 December 2022, the Customs Tariff Commission of China’s State Council issued an announcement stating that from 1 January 2023, import tariffs on some commodities will be adjusted. In 2023, the products that can still enjoy preferential tariffs are retreaded tyres for aircraft. As in the previous year, such products will be subject to a provisional import duty of 4 per cent. Under normal circumstances, Chinese customs should impose a 20 per cent tariff on retreaded tyres for aircraft.
According to export data released by China Customs, China exported 40.72 million “new pneumatic rubber tyres” (a term that includes all pneumatic tyres including bicycles as well as enginen-drive tyre products) in November. The exported tyres weighed 550,000 tons and were worth 9.88 billion yuan (about £1.18 billion; 1.33 billion euros).
Danish tyre and wheel business NDI Group, reports that it has produced large stocks of dual-rims ready for export to help European farmers benefit from reduced soil compaction and improved efficiency.
On 18 September, China Customs announced national export data for August. During the month, China exported 48.23 million sets of new pneumatic rubber tyres, down 8.9 per cent year-on-year. The weight of these tyres was 650,000 tons, an increase of 2.7 per cent. The export value reached 11.4 billion yuan (about 1.4 billion pounds, 1.6 billion euros), an increase of 15.3 per cent.
Toyo Tire’s Serbia car tyre production plant became operational on 27 July 2022. The news is in line with Europe executives’ mid-July comments, which suggested the factory would start making tyres by the end of July. The latest news is that shipments are now beginning to move out and that the company is planning to “preferentially supply the US until the end of this year [2022]” in order to “meet robust demand there”.
First half 2022 data released by several Shandong Province institutions shows that manufacturing output within China’s best-known province for tyre production is picking up.
China’s economy appears to have stalled since 2022. Recent data shows that the value-added of the manufacturing fell by 4.6 per cent year-on-year in April. An integral part of the national manufacturing machine, China’s tyre industry is also under pressure. “The most important task of our enterprise at this stage is to survive,” one Shandong tyre factory owner told Tyres & Accessories.
UK car production fell 41.3 per cent in February, with the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) reporting the manufacture of 61,657 units during the month, 43,351 fewer cars than were made than in February 2021. This reduced output was primarily due to the persistent global shortage of semiconductors causing some factories to pause production, as well as the loss of output following the closure of a major plant in Swindon last summer.
As of Friday 18 March 2022, Bridgestone Corporation will suspend its manufacturing activities in Russia until further notice. This production stop will take place after “the necessary preparations” are made. The company has also decided to freeze any new investments and suspend all exports to Russia with immediate effect.
The conflict in Ukraine has impacted upon operations at Continental’s tyre factory in Kaluga, Russia. A spokesman confirmed to Tyrepress.com that the company has “suspended tyre production intended for export at our plant in Kaluga until further notice.”
JK Tyre CFO Sanjeev Aggarwal is making margin improvement in the face of inflationary pressures a top priority, according to a recent interview with India’s Economic Times newspaper. And therefore the company will pass on raw material price increases to its customers.
Bestowed by the country’s President, the Presidential Export Award is considered Sri Lanka’s highest honour in recognition of outstanding contribution to the export sector and to the country’s economic development. The most recent awards ceremony took place on 26 November, and tyre maker GRI was named Best Exporter of Dry Rubber Products for the second consecutive year.
A focus on export markets seems to be delivering results for Ukrainian tyre maker Rosava. The company is developing a “niche strategy focused on the European and US markets,” and reports that exports have grown to 61 per cent of total sales in the first half of 2021, up from 45 per cent in the first half of 2018. “This is possible due to the continuous upgrading, expansion of the tyre range and improvement of rubber compounding based on international standards,” shares the tyre maker.
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Hankook
Shaah Shahidh; Unsplash
NDI
Qingdao Port
Toyo