Known for its style, speed and performance marketing values, Pirelli & C. S.p.A. is a multinational company based in Milan, Italy, listed on the Milan Stock Exchange since 1922, with a temporary privatization period by the consortium led by the Chinese state-owned enterprise ChemChina.
The Pirelli group has increased its turnover in the first quarter of this year by 18 p.c. The cable division achieved to a turnover of 1.05 billion Euro and an Operating Profit of 52 million Euro. The tyre division turnover increased by 12 p.c.up to 700 million Euro and the Operating Profit was 54 million Euro. Despite of fierce price competition Pirelli could achieve a 17 p.c. increase units and evidently win market shares.
The motorcycle industry started the millennium season on an optimistic note, when the “MOTORRÄDER” Fair at Dortmund opened on 1st March. Not only motorcycle manufacturers showed their new products for the year 2000, but on the total 409 stands in eight exhibition halls clothes, service and accessories were also represented. Figures produced by the German Motorcycle Manufacturers Association (IVM) confirm the abiding popularity of the motorised two-wheeler: The 187,192 new motorcycle registrations are equivalent to 6.4 p.c. growth over 1998. Not least among the accessories one must mention tyres – thus tyre manufacturers also had cause to rejoice. The industry was represented by Bridgestone, Cooper-Avon, Dunlop, Metzeler/Pirelli, Michelin and the Heidenau tyre factory showing their current products, but Continental was absent this time. Some old friends from the service sector had also turned up, among them several local companies but also Stinnes. Maybe “old” is not the right word for Stinnes. After its acquisition (together with Gummi Mayer) by the Danish Viborg group/the British Legal & General Ventures Ltd. the Stinnes/Mayer trade and service enterprises made their Fair début under the same corporate identity. News from the Dortmund show and more about motorbike related topics you can find in the April issue of NEUE REIFENZEITUNG.
Pirelli will supply the Ford Focus WRC from the beginning of 2001 in the World Rally Championships. Drivers will be Colin McRae and Carlos Sainz. Pirelli also equips Subaru with rally tyres as part of a long-term contract and cooperates with Seat.
The Financial Times has published its annual list of the top 500 global companies, ranked by market capitalisation. The only tyre company in the world list is Bridgestone, at position number 300. In the list of the top 500 European companies, there are three; Michelin (304), Pirelli (311) and Continental (482).
Car maker Seat is offering customers a new special equipment programme, with tyres and alloy wheels from its partners in rallying, Pirelli and ATS.
3,000 Turkish tyre workers returned to work yesterday after the Government had ordered a two-month postponement because of “national security issues”. The Government wants to reduce inflation from the current 60% to 20%. Unions wanted a 35% rise and were offered 26.5%, which was rejected. Last week the three main manufacturers – Brisa, Goodyear and Pirelli – took out a joint press advertisement attacking the action.
With the theme “Gemeinsam Zukunft gestalten” (“Shaping the Future Together”) a Pirelli dealer forum, one of six held in various German cities, took place just outside Hamburg at the end of March. In a number of speeches Pirelli explained how it wants to “shape the future”. Dr. Paolo Masera, for instance, managing director of Pirelli Reifenwerke as well as being responsible for the Italian manufacturer’s original equipment business worldwide since the beginning of the year, gave the tyre dealers an insight into Pirelli’s OE activities. He was able to tell them with pride that Pirelli had gained 254 homologations since 1996, no less than 169 of them in speed categories V and above. Last year almost ten million tyres went to European original equipment. With six or seven factories the Italians say they cover 95 p.c. of the OE business and 60 p.c. of the replacement market as well. With 12 p.c. European market share in ultra-high-performance tyres the company claims place three behind Michelin, the market leader, and Continental. Dr. Klaus Betka, board member with responsibility for production, spoke about the new manufacturing process MIRS (Modular Integrated Robotized System), while Roland Steindorf, managing director of the Sales Marketing Company, spoke about the possibilities and opportunities of “e-commerce”, i.e. selling on the internet. Within the framework of the so-called “e-Pirelli Project” the Italians plan to invest roughly two trillion lire in all divisions of the group on internet applications and new technology by the year 2002. Details are explained in the April edition of NEUE REIFENZEITUNG.
The tenth race of the Pirelli Porsche Cup in Spa has been called off because, during practice, the tyres showed dramatic failures. The Pirelli tyres, it was said, “peeled like onions”. Following failures in Silverstone, Barcelona and Monaco, Porsche felt compelled to cancel the race in the interest of driver safety. Porsche is blaming Pirelli for inferior production process and the use of faulty compounds.
Pirelli Germany’s year end figures show an increase of 33 p.c. compared to the previous year. The consolidated turnover was 626.3 million Euro; slightly higher level than last year. The earnings of the ordinary company activities amount to 21.7 million Euro. The strongest subsidiary, “Pirelli Reifenwerke”, grew five p.c. to 442.2 million Euro. The deliveries in the original equipment market increased 34 p.c and sales of passenger car and commercial vehicle tyres increased 4.8 p.c. to 9.1 million tyres.
While Pirelli and Toyo shares – although only from time to time – displayed an upward trend in February, most of the other important tyre manufacturers (for example Bridgestone, Continental, Cooper, Goodyear and Michelin) were among the losers. Their shares have fallen to a new 52-week low, but shares in Yokohama rose 20 per cent at the end of February.
The first production line utilising MIRS technology (Modular Integrated Robotized System), was unveiled by Pirelli chief Marco Tronchetti Provera at an international press conference on 11 July at the company’s Bicocca factory. The MIRS process is managed entirely on-line. In the next three years, four more MIRS plants will be opened in Germany, the UK, the USA and the Far East, representing an investment of 500 million Euro (excluding building and servicing costs). Total production capacity will be 10 million HP and UHP tyres a year.
Following price increases of between 3 and 5% by Cooper, Goodyear, Pirelli and Yokohama in the US market, Michelin is increasing its prices of passenger car and light truck tyres by 5%. Tyre manufacturers need a minimum price increase of 3% merely to compensate for the 8% increase in raw material costs (rubber, oil, carbon black).
Pirelli has announced a price increase for commercial tyres of 2.5%, effective 1st September 2000. A company statement attributed this to the increasing costs of raw material.
The turnover of the motorcycle tyre division of Pirelli Germany (brands: Metzeler & Pirelli) in 1999 amounted to 94.9 million Euro; 1.4 p.c. more than the previous year. In motorcycle tyre terms, Pirelli is the market leader in Germany, Italy and Europe as a whole.
With the teams Burns/Reid and Kankkunen/Repo on Subaru Impreza as well as Auriol/Giraudet on Seat Córdoba Pirelli supplied those with its PZero tyres who won the first three prizes of the “Safari-Rallye”.
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