Scottish National Party will vote against fuel price increase
The Road Haulage Association has welcomed the news that the Scottish National Party are to vote against the 3ppl fuel duty increase planned for January 2013.
The Road Haulage Association has welcomed the news that the Scottish National Party are to vote against the 3ppl fuel duty increase planned for January 2013.
Online tyre dealer Delticom has published its 9-monthly report for 2012. In a troubled market environment the company recognised revenues of €280.4 million in 9M 12, a fall of -5.8 per cent year-on year.
Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) decreased in the reporting period by 37.9 per cent to €17.5 million (9M 11: €28.2 million), primarily due to higher fix costs. This translates into an EBIT margin (EBIT in percent of revenues) of 6.2 per cent (9M 11: 9.5 per cent). Third quarter EBIT saw a decline of 55.0 per cent, from prior-year's €9.5 million to €4.3 million. The quarterly EBIT margin was 4.9 per cent (Q3 11: 9.5 per cent).
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has announced that it will webcast its presentation at the 2012 Goldman Sachs Industrials Conference in Boston on November 13. During the presentation Darren R Wells, executive vice president and chief financial officer, will provide a business overview and discuss the company’s strategies.
KTM, Triumph and Harley Davidson rate as top motorcycle franchises according to the Motorcycle Retailers' Association (MRA) Motorcycle Dealer Attitude Survey Autumn 2012 results.
Southwaite-based timber harvesting, marketing, and haulage company Sheffield & Co Ltd has reduced the frequency of annual tyre-related breakdowns from 35 to two. The company says the reduction is due to 18 months of work with Michelin technical manager Dan Lamb to adopt a bespoke tyre policy, with different pressures tailored for on-road and forestry work.
Following the London taxi manufacturer Manganese Bronze being put into Administration, the Administrators have made 176 staff redundant. Matthew Hammond, joint administrator and PwC partner, said:
"Regretfully, without financial support to overcome the Group's operational issues we have had to make staff redundancies. While the steering box recall remains, there is a voluntary suspension on vehicle sales, and we are now concentrating all resources on testing the solution to the steering fault. We have retained sufficient numbers of staff across the dealership, head office and production network to address the operational, technical and financial circumstances that the business faces."
Matthew Hammond, Tony Barrell, Ian Green and Mike Jervis were appointed joint administrators of Manganese Bronze Holdings plc, LTI Limited, MBH Services Limited and MBH Property Services Limited (“the Group”) on 30 October 2012.
The Group is the manufacturer and retailer of the iconic London taxi, sold in the UK and abroad. It provides a retail and maintenance service through its wholly-owned dealerships throughout the UK, under the trading name The London Taxi Company. It has a turnover of £75m and 277 employees in total including three overseas employees. 175 employees are based at the Group’s head office and manufacturing site located in Coventry with the remaining employees spread across dealerships in London, Manchester, Leeds, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Coventry.
While financial analysts were not more than satisfied with what they characterised as an “in-line” set of third quarter financial results from Continental AG, a spell of cold weather could be just the tonic for the German tyre maker which is strong in winter tyre sales.
Financial analysts welcomed the relative good news of Michelin’s third quarter/nine-month results, which saw sales rise despite lower volumes and followed profit warnings from Nokian and Delticom respectively in the week before. As a result Deustche Bank upgraded its operating profit expectations to 2.55 billion euros, 9 per cent above consensus.
Michelin UK managing director, Eric Le Corre, has been elected as the new chairman of the British Tyre Manufacturers Association (BTMA) at a recent Board meeting. The new chairman-elect replaces Continental Tyre managing director David Smith whose two year chairmanship ended recently. Le Corre will also represent the BTMA on the board of the Tyre Industry Federation (TIF). He brings with him 14 years experience in the business and takes over with immediate effect.
Indian financial daily The Economic Times states that Apollo Tyres is “in the process” of acquiring Cooper Tire & Rubber Company. The publication’s 11 October news is based on “sources with direct knowledge” of the deal; these sources indicated to The Economic Times that the acquisition could be valued at between US$600 and $800 million and give Apollo a majority share. When Tyres & Accessories contacted Apollo Tyres directly in relation to the news, the tyre maker’s Corporate Brands & Relations manager Rohit Sharan said Apollo “would not comment on market speculation.”
It’s only a few months since German financial daily the Handelsblatt referred to Hankook as “an aggressive challenger” to Continental. On 9 October the newspaper reported on a challenge facing the German tyre maker from other quarters. In an interview, a senior Bridgestone manager let it be known that the global market leader also wants to play a leading role in Europe in future.
The wait is over for those hungry to read up on Michelin’s latest gastronomic tips – the Michelin Guide Great Britain & Ireland 2013 arrives in bookshops today, priced at £14.99 (€16.99 in Ireland). This year’s guide sees three restaurants promoted from one to two Michelin stars. Sketch, in Mayfair, opened in 2002 and received its first Michelin star in 2005; L’Enclume, in Cartmel also opened in 2002 and was awarded its first Michelin star three years later; while Michael Wignall at the Latymer, Bagshot, opened in 2007 and won its first Michelin star in 2009.
Leading international branding consultancy Interbrand has just published its 13th Annual Best Global Brands report, listing the world's 100 most valuable brands. However, it has to be pointed out that despite the size of some of the industry’s leading brands – and despite their ability to communicate their various brands online (see separate article) – there are no tyre brands in the top 100 this year.
UK tyre manufacturers and distributors are risking their long-term sustainability in order to increase sales, according the latest report issued by Plimsoll publishing. Yet while sales have seen an upsurge, the 127 companies continuing with their current business model are said to be “in danger of spiralling out of control and are heading for rocky ground. “
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