The US Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA) and General Products Group will discuss the political and business trends affecting the industry, at its annual meeting which is being held between 26 and 28 February. The RMA/GPG annual meeting will be held at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort in Phoenix, Arizona.
Honeywell Friction Materials will launch the new 2005/2006 edition of its Jurid brand friction catalogue for passenger cars and light trucks at the Autoechanika 2004 show.
The UK continues to lead the way in car sales as dealers throughout Western Europe enjoyed a mild recovery in March. Early sales trends show Britain outperformed other European markets with new registrations for the UK up by 11 % this year. A total of 466, 955 cars were sold in Britain during March. The German car market enjoyed a recovery with sales figures up 8 % to 345,000 units sold while France also saw an improvement of 5.6 % on the previous twelve months. Renault and Ford made the most significant gains within the UK market during March while Volkswagen topped the European market with an increase of 13 % as predicted by market watchers following discounts offered on the new Golf.
The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., announced its consolidated results for the first half of fiscal 2004. The high value of the yen and sluggishness in the market for replacement tyres in Japan led to an overall decline in Yokohama’s tyre sales, but sales of hydraulic hoses and golf products increased. Sales of the tyre group amounted to 960.3 million Euro, a 0.8 per cent slide, and operating income decreased 27.5 per cent, to 15.1 million Euro. Demand in the Japanese market fell considerably, as both unit- and value-based sales of replacement tyres contracted. Sales of tyres on an original equipment basis were basically unchanged. Reflecting the current operating environment and these results, in fiscal 2004 Yokohama forecasts consolidated net sales of 3.02 billion Euro, a 0.1 per cent decrease, and net income of 75.6 million Euro, a 1.4 per cent decrease.
Sumitomo Rubber Industries has reported a 50 per cent rise in net profit for the first half of the year, up to 4.79 billion Yen (US$ 40.77 million), compared with 3.2 billion Yen $27.25 m) in 1H 2002. Tyre sales were described as “sluggish” and the figures were boosted by strong sales of sporting goods (notably golf clubs and balls), where operating profits were up 56 per cent, and by cost-cutting measures. SRI maintained its forecast of a record 11 billion Yen ($93.6 m) for the full year.
VW is to launch two new models in China, the Golf and the Polo, aimed at the fast-growing low-price vehicle segment. VW holds a 40 per cent share of the Chinese market, down from over 54 per cent two years ago. The company expects to sell 500,000 vehicles this year and hopes to double this figure by 2007 as the market continues to expand. This year China overtook the USA to become VW’s second largest market after Germany.
Jeanne B. Sherman (44) has been appointed as director, Global Marketing Services for the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., reporting to Cathryn M. Fischer, vice president and chief marketing officer. Sherman has 20 years’ experience of marketing with several well-known brands, including Wilson golf balls, Cheetos snacks and Kraft foods.
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