North America
From the 1 January 2006 Cooper-Avon Tyres Ltd, will be known as Cooper Tire & Rubber Company Europe Ltd. The news follows the launch of a new international corporate image at the SEMA show in November and is seen as an effort to unify the company’s global operations. While the move is clearly linked to the company’s efforts to enhance the global recognition of its Cooper brand, this will not be at the expense of the Avon brand, according to Cooper.
Michelin does not envisage raising prices in Europe at the moment, despite price increases in North America and Japan. “Our philosophy has not changed, we reflect the rise in the prices of the raw materials in our selling prices,” Reuters quoted one Michelin spokesperson as saying. Michelin’s last price increase in Europe was a year ago.
(Akron/Tire Review) As was first reported by Tire Review, Michelin North America (MNA) plans to invest $80 million over the next six years to upgrade equipment and increase capacity at its semi-finished rubber production facilities in Sandy Springs and Starr, South Carolina.
(Akron/Tire Review) Continental Tire North America (CTNA) launched what it called “the first online financial claims management system” for dealers in the North American tyre industry. The online effort is “designed to streamline the processing of financial claims for CTNA’s business partners and to eliminate a majority of the documentation which was previously submitted in hard copy format,” the company said.
(Akron/Tire Review) Michelin North America (MNA) announced that it is increasing prices on a variety of tyre lines. MNA is raising prices on all of its Michelin, BFGoodrich, Uniroyal and private and associate brand replacement passenger car and light truck tyres by up to 8 per cent. That increase will take effective in the US as of 1 February 2006 and in Canada as of 1 March 2006.
In 2004 the global tyre market for passenger cars, light, medium and heavy-duty truck applications totalled nearly 1.2 billion, of which 857 million (72 per cent) were replacement tyres. According to a new report published by Research and Markets, the world tyre market is essentially a replacement market in terms of volume and value, with OE sales representing only a small but influential quarter of the market.
(Akron/Tire Review) Michelin North America (MNA) has introduced three new Michelin X-Ice PAX system winter tyres that can be operated after a puncture for 125 miles at 50 mph, according to MNA. The Michelin X-Ice PAX System 225-700R480A, Michelin X-Ice PAX System 245-680R460A and Michelin X-Ice PAX System 235-710R460A tires are available now for the Nissan Quest, the Acura RL and the Honda Odyssey Touring Edition, respectively, stated MNA.
Pirelli & C SpA has reaffirmed its guidance for “significant improvement” in full-year results compared with 2004. The news follows strong nine-month results, which saw net profits rise 34 per cent. Revenue in the first nine months of 2005 was 2,707 million euros, an increase of 9.8 per cent compared with 2,466 million euros on 30 September 2004. EBITDA was 412 million euros (15.2 per cent of sales), an increase of 17.7 per cent from 350 million euros in the first nine months of last year.
(Akron/Tire Review) WSOC TV in South Carolina is reporting that Michelin North America plans to invest some $80 million on upgrades to its rubber mixing and tyre plants in Anderson County, South Carolina. According to the report, MNA submitted plans to the Anderson County Council earlier this week. The station said that MNA plans a formal announcement later this month.
Goodyear’s North American Consumer Tire Business has named Brett Ponton to the position of vice president, Goodyear North American Consumer Retail. In this position, he will be responsible for all company-owned Goodyear retail stores in North America. Overall, Goodyear’s retail operations group is responsible for 763 company-owned tyre stores, 139 of them operated under the Just Tires retail format.
Rome, Georgia-based Pirelli Tire North America (PTNA) has received ISO 9001:2000 accreditation and ISO/TS 16949:2002 technical specification. Guy Mannino, PTNA’s president, was informed at the recent SEMA Show in Las Vegas that the company had been awarded the coveted certification.
The Yokohama Rubber Co Ltd posted a 10.7 per cent increase in operating income, to 4.8 billion yen, in the interim fiscal period ended 30 September. The increase is attributed to a 6.1 per cent increase in net sales, to 201.3 billion yen. Furthermore the company reports that growth in unit sales of tyres and progress in reducing costs more than offset increases in raw-material costs. Leading the sales growth were gains in Yokohama’s tyre operations in North America and in Europe. The company also registered growth in sales of tires in Japan. A decline in income taxes was the chief reason for a 12.6 billion yen increase in net income, to 13.4 billion yen.
Driven by operating losses in all of its tyre units, Cooper Tire & Rubber Co finished the third quarter with a net loss of $1 million and sales that nudged just 1 per cent over last year’s results. Analysts described the company’s third quarter as “challenging” and warned that there are “more headwinds to come.”
For the quarter, Cooper posted sales of $558 million, up 1 per cent against the same period in 2004. The net loss, said Cooper, came as a result of lower unit sales, higher raw material costs, and “higher reported interest expense.”
(Akron/Tire Review) Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co is expanding the Dunlop brand Direzza tyre line by launching two new Direzza race tyres and new sizes of the Direzza DZ101.
(Akron/Tire Review) Continental AG is considering the purchase of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co’s engineered products business. Conti CFO and Continental Tire North America President Alan Hippe told German media last week that such an acquisition would be a good fit. “We will look at that. That is for sure,” Hippe said. “But I have to state here that our major priority is to grow in automotive systems.
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