Middle East
The Zeetex tyre brand launched a new website on Thursday 12 September 2013. According to the company, the site has been “aesthetically upgraded, is user friendly and boasts of enhanced functionality and dynamic tools”. The goal appears to have been to create a “visually appealing, polished and professional website – which also offers region-specific capabilities.”
The United Kingdom is Cooper Tire’s strongest European market. The company holds a 7 to 7.5 per cent of the consumer market here, thanks largely to healthy 4×4 tyre sales. Market share on the other side of the English Channel and in the PCR segment is more modest, however, and Jeff Schumacher would like to see this change. Schumacher, who took on the role of Cooper Tire Europe’s managing director and vice-president at the start of this year, aims to increase combined market share for all Cooper brands to five per cent across Europe. To achieve this, the company has opened a new branch office in Russia, is increasing market penetration in France and Germany and signing on new brand ambassadors. Furthermore, in September Cooper unveiled a new range-topping passenger car tyre, the Zeon CS Sport.
"The sudden price hike in both Brent crude oil and UK wholesale fuel prices has thankfully receded as the likelihood of US and UK intervention in Syria subsides. This once again demonstrates the volatility of the UK's road fuels market as traders and speculators cause instability in prices" said Brian Madderson, of the Petrol Retailers' Association, commenting on the latest inflation figures.
Shandong Linglong manufactured Infinity Tyres offer both light and heavy radial truck tyres, with 15 dimensions available for the former, and a heavy truck radial range featuring over 20 patterns in 40 dimensions.
Infinity Tyres meet major international standards including DOT (USA), ECE (European), SASO (Middle East), and are in addition REACH compliant for Europe.
Rubber prices are entering a “bull market” as futures hit a three-month high following indications that China's economy is likely to demand more rubber for tyres. According to a Bloomberg report, rubber for delivery in January advanced as much as 3.2 per cent to 278 yen a kilogramme (2,817 a metric tonne) on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange, 22 per cent up from this year’s lowest close.
At a time when the UK economy is at last seeing positive signs of recovery, we are now at risk of being faced with high fuel prices as a result of the current tension in the Middle East, says the Road haulage Association. Commentators have observed that despite the fact Syria is not an oil producer, there is a strong possibility that the Brent price of oil may go as high as $150 per barrel.
The Petrol Retailers' Association (PRA), representing the UK’s independent forecourt retailers, has warned that fuel prices are set to rise as conflict in the Middle East continues. The ongoing geo-political tensions have prompted speculation by traders which has in turn forced the price of Brent Crude oil to a six month high of US$115.65/barrel.
"Fuel prices are expected to increase throughout the UK as external factors have a great impact on the price of crude oil" said Brian Madderson, Petrol Retailers' Association Chairman. The civil unrest in Syria and Egypt, the reduction by one third in Libya's oil exports and the demand for oil slowly returning to some Asian markets have all had an impact on crude oil prices. The cost of Brent pushed through the critical $110/barrel level last week which equates to a 10 per cent increase since the end of June.
Goodyear Tire & Rubber has announced what it says are record second quarter earnings, and even its European business showed signs of improvement. Net income more than doubled year-on-year from $85 million in Q2 2012 to $181 million, or $0.67 per share. This exceeded the average analyst estimate by $0.19, and company chairman and CEO Richard J. Kramer said the result demonstrates “the disciplined execution of our strategies by Goodyear associates around the globe as our operations become more efficient, reliable and integrated.”
Serbia’s Ministry of Finance and Economy has published its list of the country’s leading exporters in the first quarter of 2013, and the automotive sector was amongst the major contributors in this area. Third on the top exporter list, behind Fiat Automobili Srbija and the Petroleum Industry of Serbia (NIS), was Tigar Tyres.
Pirelli travels to the Hungaroring with the new mash-up tyre selection sampled by 2013 drivers at Silverstone’s Young Driver Test last week this weekend. Consisting of the 2013 compounds in the tread and the 2012 Kevlar-belted construction, Pirelli channelled its inner Thom Yorke, pronouncing there were no alarms and no surprises following the “reliable” testing of the ‘new’ tyres’ performance. Pirelli’s Motorsport director Paul Hembery was diplomatic following the Young Driver Test, opining that “everybody achieved their objectives” at Silverstone. Thanking the teams for their cooperation in running tyre tests as required by Pirelli, he said the tyres had run “reliably throughout the three days”, and maintained the hope that they would allow teams to use “an interesting mix of strategies for the races ahead”. Yet with teams already possessing “a lot of information about the shape and deformation of this tyre from the previous season,” according to Hembery, it seems likely that these new compromise tyres could reduce tactical malleability. That said, the Hungarian grand prix will allow some focus on tyre strategy, with limited overtaking opportunities and low average speeds, so perhaps there could be more to talk about from a tyre point of view than Tyrepress.com anticipates.
"The unexpected crash in the exchange rate for the Pound for the US Dollar, from US$1.58 to 1.48, in just four weeks from mid-June is hitting wholesale fuel costs", said Brian Madderson, Petrol Retailers’ Association (PRA) chairman.
Continental has confirmed it will invest around €100 million increasing production capacity at its Puchov truck and bus tyre factory in Slovakia, boosting capacity from some 2.6 million tyres a year to over three million tyres. Puchov, Continental’s largest truck and bus tyre production facility within the EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) region, will also receive “extensive upgrades” to machinery and infrastructure in order to achieve maximum production efficiency.
The Association of European Automotive and Industrial Battery Manufacturers (EUROBAT) has elected Johann-Friedrich Dempwolff, general manager and vice-president of Industry and Governmental Relations for Johnson Controls Power Solutions EMEA, as its new president. The appointment took place last week during EUROBAT meetings in Italy. Dempwolff will serve as president for two years.
Trelleborg and AGCO Corporation have renewed their long-term agricultural tyre development cooperation agreement.
"Following the recognition of Trelleborg as the best EAME (Europe, Africa and Middle East) Supplier in September 2012, this new agreement with AGCO is an important confirmation of our solid business relationship. It provides a firm foundation for the accomplishment of our ambitious future mutual goals,” says Stefano Bettinelli, OE Director at Trelleborg’s Agricultural and Forestry Tyres division.
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