India
Edward Freedman, the football branding guru who headed up merchandising at Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur FC in the late 1980s and 1990s, has questioned the effectiveness of sponsorship from companies such as tyre manufacturers.
Michelin has been awarded ISO 9001:2008 certification for its Tyreplus and Michelin Truck Service Centre (MTSC) networks across India. With this certification, Michelin becomes the largest certified tyre service network in the country; the company presently operates 23 Tyreplus and 13 MTSC outlets within India.
Pirelli has announced its tyre compound nominations for the forthcoming grands prix in Korea, Japan and India. The P Zero White medium tyre is present for all three events – it seems likely that Monaco will remain the only grand prix of 2013 at which it was not amongst Pirelli’s allocation. Each of the other three compounds will feature once, with the two hardest compounds deployed for the seventh time this season at Japan’s Suzuka.
In the latest installment in the on-going Apollo/Cooper merger saga, a Chinese court has postponed a hearing on a case brought against the combination by Chinese manufacturing business Cooper Chengshan.
For the second year running, Cheng Shin Rubber Ind. Co. Ltd, trading as Maxxis International, has been named one of Asia's Fab 50 companies by Forbes magazine.
In explaining Maxxis' inclusion on the list, Forbes cited the company's record revenue in 2012, boosted by demand in emerging markets including Indonesia, China and India. Forbes also noted that Maxxis' net profit grew by 86 per cent last year to $530 million.
Cooper Tire & Rubber shareholders will vote on the company’s acquisition by Apollo Tyres at a meeting scheduled for 30 September. Cooper stockholders of record as of the close of business 30 August 2013 are entitled to vote at the special meeting, which will take place in the US city of Cleveland.
Taiwan’s Federal Tyre has become the latest tyre manufacturer to sign a sponsorship agreement with Manchester United FC. The three-year agreement, making Federal United’s Official Tyre Partner in Russia and Taiwan was launched at the Interauto Show in Moscow, led by Federal CEO, Jamie Ma.
Shares in Cooper Tire & Rubber fell 3.3 per cent to US$31.50 on Monday 26 August, putting the stock down 6.1 per cent in total this month. According to the Wall Street Journal, this marks a two-month low and comes off the back of investor fears that the decision India’s central banks to review large deals by Indian companies may affect the transaction. Indeed one report emanating from India suggests that Apollo Tyres’ big for Cooper Tire is about to get reviewed in particular.
It appears the strike at the Cooper Chengshan factory in China is over, and the 5,000 workers are back at their jobs and producing tyres. Details of how the strike was resolved are not yet known.
On 21 August, Apollo Tyres signed a three-year partnership with Manchester United, which sees the company named as the official tyre of the world-famous football team across both the UK and India. Details of the investment associated with the deal have not been released. What we do know is that as well as access to player appearances in both countries the company will be making the most of its association with Man U in online advertising as well as its marketing and point of sale material. In addition, in a development of its ‘go the distance’ philosophy, Apollo Tyres will create football-based play zones in local communities in the UK and India; these will feature recycled rubber and encourage healthy lifestyles among youngsters.
It was announced today that Apollo Tyres is now Manchester United’s Official Tyre Partner in the UK and India. Tyres & Accessories was present at the deal’s signing at the club’s Aon Training Complex in Carrington and will report full details; the basics are that the three-year agreement will, amongst other things, see the two parties participate in a “joint community commitment to encourage healthy lifestyles and develop sporting skills in young people.”
Apollo Tyres does not anticipate that alterations to India’s overseas investment regulations will influence its plans to acquire Cooper Tire & Rubber. On 14 August, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) reduced the limit for overseas direct investment; with immediate effect the limit for overseas direct investment must be no more than 100 per cent of the Indian purchasing company’s net worth. The RBI will decide upon any overseas direct investment exceeding the 100 per cent limit on a case-by-case basis.
Incentives to draw in prospective customers are familiar practice for most tyre dealers, but free onions with every car or truck tyre sold? One tyre seller in India has introduced such an offer, but he has more in mind than just selling more tyres.
On 28 May, JK Tyre & Industries poured water on news published by Indian financial daily The Financial Express, stating it had “no firm proposal” to acquire a tyre manufacturer in Southeast Asia for Rs 1.5 billion (£15.7 million) and that it had “not made any commitment whatsoever” to this effect. Yet at the time the company was still committed to investing in the region, specifically in rubber plantations. Now it appears this project has been shelved, or even dropped entirely.
In its financial results for the March to June quarter – the first quarter of its current financial year – JK Tyre posted a net profit of Rs 540.4 million (£5.7 million), a year-on-year increase of 265.9 per cent. Quarter net sales came to Rs 18,669.4 (£196.0 million), 3.3 per cent higher than in the first quarter of 2012.
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