Pirelli: No significant market changes
According to a statement published yesterday, Pirelli doesn’t expect that a possible deterioration in the tyre market will influence its projected performance in the 2018 financial year.
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.
According to a statement published yesterday, Pirelli doesn’t expect that a possible deterioration in the tyre market will influence its projected performance in the 2018 financial year.
Pirelli’s Middle East tyre retail operation has adopted Groove Grove technology as a way of improving its service offer.
According to local news reports, Groove Grove was created by Tire Profiles, a partner of MAHA Maschinenbau Haldenwang GmbH & Co., the German supplier of high-end garage and vehicle inspection equipment. Using the technology, motorists can get tyre-related information, including suspension, pressure, alignment, wear and tear and replacement recommendations. The technology also has the capability to calculate the tread depth of the major grooves on a tyre to a tenth of a millimetre.
Pirelli has signed an agreement with Luna Rossa Challenge for the constitution of a partnership aimed at the development of a multi-year project which will lead to Luna Rossa’s participation in the next edition of the America’s Cup, set for New Zealand in 2021. Pirelli and Prada will be co-titled sponsors of the vessel and will detail their plans at a soon-to-be-organised event.
As expected, Ning Gaoning has been co-opted to the Board of Directors at Pirelli & C. S.p.A. and appointed chairman. Ning, who is also chairman of Chinese state-owned petrochemical and fertiliser company Sinochem as well as chairman of Pirelli parent company ChemChina, succeeds Ren Jianxin. Ren relinquished all roles he held on the Board of Directors at Pirelli & C. S.p.A. on 30 July.
Pirelli has presented new solutions and concepts as part of its Cyber Tyre development programme for more than a decade now. At last year’s Geneva Motor Show, the tyre maker introduced the Connesso system, a sensor-based solution that provides motorists with real-time tyre pressure and temperature data, as well as information about use and maintenance. Yet Cyber Tyre has only focused on road-going solutions so far – a further step for Pirelli would be to introduce its technology into Formula 1.
China’s largest tyre manufacturer, Zhongce Rubber, has entered the global top ten, research published today by Tyrepress shows. Best known in Europe for its Westlake brand, the company has pushed up in the rankings past Giti Tire – manufacturer of GT Radial – which did not supply 2017 figures before the deadline, Toyo Tires, and Cooper Tire & Rubber, which fell three places. Competition in the lower quarter of the top ten places is fierce, with turnovers for tyres between 2.4 billion euros (Cooper in 13th) and 3.2 billion euros (Maxxis in ninth).
Pirelli & C. SpA has published its financial results for the first half of 2018. The key figures show a 2.0 per cent year-on-year decline in revenues to 2.63 billion euros despite organic growth of 5.5 per cent; adjusted EBIT rose 6.8 per cent to 473.3 million euros and the margin increased from 16.5 per cent (H1 2017) to 18.0 per cent; Net income (before discontinued operations) was up 169.1 per cent to 181.9 million euros.
As a consequence of his announced retirement as chairman of China National Chemical Corporation (ChemChina), Ren Jianxin has resigned from all roles he held on the Board of Directors at Pirelli & C. S.p.A. His resignation took effect 30 July. Pirelli has officially thanked Ren for his “contribution to the company in these years.”
With investment of 65 million euros, Pirelli is taking a 49 per cent share in a “technologically advanced” consumer tyre plant in China. Through this joint venture partnership with Hixih Rubber Industry Group, Pirelli says it will gain greater production flexibility in APAC, particularly within the high value segment. The new joint venture company has been named Jining Shenzhou Tyre Co.
Pirelli enjoys drip-feeding information about its Calendar. This week it released a teaser in which we learn that the images gracing the 2019 Pirelli Calendar reflect the “nature of dreams and ambitions in the 21st century.” We’re not certain what that means, but no matter. Pirelli tells us that via the photos, we “enter the lives of four women – and their partners – on an intimate journey exploring the path to achieving their dreams and ambitions – and how it has left them feeling.” These four stories are perhaps best told in Pirelli’s own words:
Yesterday, Pirelli & C. closed a ‘Schuldschein’ financing – guaranteed by Pirelli Tyre – for a total of 525 million euros. The financing, granted by primary market participants, consists of one 82-million-euro tranche with a three-year maturity, one of 423 million euros with a five-year maturity and one of 20 million euro with a seven-year maturity.
We don’t know how we’ve lived this long without one: iXOOST has launched a Bluetooth speaker that resembles a Pirelli Formula 1 tyre. The tyre/speaker is the result of a partnership between the tyre maker and high-end car audio specialist iXOOST to “create a new sound experience inspired by motorsport.”
Thanks to an internal document sent to EU member states and national tyre trade associations, we now have a clearer idea about what form the European Commission’s final anti-dumping measures against Chinese truck and bus tyres may take. The Commission favours a system of fixed, per-tyre duties similar to the preliminary duties introduced in May; the silver lining for Chinese tyre makers is that it has recommended these duties be reduced.
According to information published by Pirelli and based upon regional association and third-party data, the European car tyre market grew six per cent year-on-year in May 2018. Overall growth occurred courtesy of strong performance within the aftermarket, which during the month was ten per cent higher than a year earlier; the market for 18-inch and larger sizes were up 20 per cent. The original equipment market in Europe declined five per cent year-on-year in May.
To-date, a total of 516 Pirelli run-flat tyres have been homologated for original equipment fitment, the tyre maker reports. This tally includes 326 homologations for summer tyres, 100 for winter tyres, and 90 for all-season tyres.
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