Raw Materials
During the first quarter of 2012 Bridgestone Europe will roll out a new round of price increases for retread materials across the region it serves. Starting from 1 March and varying from country to country, price increases will average ten per cent for Bridgestone and Bandag Pre Cured Tread products and eight per cent for Bandag Cushion Gum products.
The Westlake tyre brand is named after one of China’s most popular domestic tourist destinations and a 2011 addition to UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites – the freshwater West Lake in the centre of Hangzhou, the home town of its manufacturer Hangzhou Zhongce, located around 180km south-west of Shanghao. Shen Jin-Rong, Hangzhou Zhongce president and chairman, reflects with pride on the link between what is seen as a premier Chinese location and the tyre brand named after it: “Westlake is our tyre brand and also the best place in our city.” The Al Dobowi Group distributes the brand in several European territories through its Eskay Tyres subsidiary; the newly exclusive distributor of the brand in the UK was announced as Axle Group Holdings at the end of September – owner of the Viking International wholesale arm and the National Tyres & Autocare retail chain (see T&A October’s Wholesale feature and the Related News link below). Tyres & Accessories travelled to the town from Shanghai with representatives from the Al Dobowi Group to see the development of Hangzhou Zhongce’s manufacturing facilities, and to witness the growth in interaction between the manufacturer and European dealers of its Westlake brand.
Yokohama Tire Corporation is ringing in the New Year with hefty price rises on its OTR tyres. As of 1 January 2012, base prices for these products in the US will increase by up to 15 per cent; this list price adjustment will be followed by additional in-line adjustments, the details of which Yokohama will announce at a later date.
Looking back on 2011 and forward to the coming year, Rick Phillips, Yokohama Tire Corporation’s director of commercial sales, states that the tyre maker expects the strong demand it has experienced in the North American market this year to continue. “Demand has continued to outweigh supply so we have literally sold everything that we are able to build,” he commented. “As an industry, we will go into 2012 with very little beginning inventory, much like we did in 2011…we see the demand continuing to be greater than supply, at least through next summer. Despite reports on the economy being on the brink of another recession, the trucking industry remains strong.” Phillips believes that high levels of demand, particularly within the OEM segment, may lead to further pressure upon the replacement market.
The 2011 edition of Bridgestone Europe’s “Environmental Commitment and Performance” report has been released, and in addition to updating consumption and emissions data for European manufacturing operations, the company has introduced this latest report with an overview of its environmental strategies. These, according to the report, centre on three main objectives – being in harmony with nature, valuing natural resources and reducing CO2 emissions. The report also explains that Bridgestone Europe intends to implement its environmental mission through two core strategies, namely a commitment to open environmental communication and the implementation of TEAMS, a Total Environmental Advanced Management System.
German machine manufacturer the Pallmann Group and Spanish tyre recycler Gestión Mediambiental de Neumáticos – otherwise known as GMN – have begun a partnership for developing, building and selling complete tyre shredding and reprocessing plants. These products will be marketed under the Ecotrec name and encompass all modules necessary for recycling car and truck tyres; these include Pallmann’s shredders (the Lion and Tiger units), granulators (Panther), and separators (Eco-Sep), as well as complete conveyor and control technology, including appropriate know-how. Initially the companies will focus on marketing the product line in Europe and North America.
Financial analysts responded warmly to Continental’s third quarter earnings results, but added a note of caution too, with Morgan Stanley stating: “probably not enough to keep the share moving up.” The investor’s note pointed out that revenues are 5 per cent ahead of the street, EBIT beat consensus by 4 per cent and margin of 9.7 per cent is “just shy of the 9.6 per cent expected.”
Michelin’s third quarter financial report for 2011 has shown total net sales of 5.1 billion euros and nine-month total sales of 15.2 billion euros, figures that represent positive changes of 10.6 per cent and 17.3 per cent for their respective periods. Sales volumes were up 9.3 per cent, allowing the French giant to proclaim its results “solid” and to reaffirm “that growth in sales volumes should trend towards eight per cent by year end.” The company noted the “slower momentum” of the third quarter, particularly noticeable in the passenger car and light truck tyres segment, which was up only 5.9 per cent to 2.7 billion euros in the quarter. Michelin also said its “pricing policy added 10 per cent to nine-month sales growth”, offsetting “the full-year impact of higher raw materials costs”.
Bridgestone has followed up its September “major strategic investment” announcement, detailing the $1.2 billion it will spend on OTR production facilities in North Carolina, with more details that suggest record spending levels to meet rising demand in emerging markets. The corporation released its Mid-term Management Plan 2011, covering the period 2012-2016 in which it set a target of a 6 per cent return on assets next year. The plan detailed “measures for expanding sales of strategic tyre products and improving its sales mix, maximizing operational rationalization, and thoroughly streamlining company assets.”
China’s Longxing Chemical Industry, which supplies carbon black and electricity to “major tyre makers” in the people’s republic is reportedly planning to raise 400 million yuan by issuing a maximum of 45 million shares at 9.26 yuan per share in a private placement.
A direct pay contract signed between Russian corporation Tatneft and Thai Eastern Rubber is hoped to reduce the procurement costs associated with raw materials for tyres. The agreement was signed following a Thai Eastern Group delegation visit to the Nizhnekamsk SSC tyre plant and Kama Research and Technology Center in Russia; this visit and meeting was initiated by OOO Tatneft-Neftekhim Management Company under the scope of implementing company policy of entering into direct pay contracts with raw material producers.
Tyre industry customers will benefit from one of three recently announced Lanxess investments in Brazil. The company reported on October 6 that it will build two new plants at its Porto Feliz site, which is located State of São Paulo. One of these new facilities, run by the Lanxess subsidiary Rhein Chemie, will produce Rhenoshape curing bladders, a product used to give tyres their final shape and properties. The new Porto Feliz plant will also manufacture the rubber additive Rhenogran.
Prices for Yokohama’s consumer tyre products sold in the US will increase by as much as eight per cent as of November 1. Yokohama Tire Corporation director of sales, Shawn Denlein, says the new prices for its passenger, performance and light truck tyres are being introduced due to “the costs of raw materials, energy and transportation remaining at very high levels.”
Recent flooding in Thailand has had less impact on natural rubber prices than may have been inspective. Deutsche Bank research shows that the impact on rubber supply has been “quite muted” and flooding around key plantations is not severe. As a result the spot price for natural rubber has reportedly continued its declining trend, hovering around US$4/kilo – a level last seen in March 2011.
Buoyed by better economic data from the US, natural rubber prices in Malaysia and Thailand increased for the third straight day. According to Bloomberg, March delivery natural rubber pricing increased 1.4 per cent to US$4,020 per tonne on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange. Rubber pricing also improved from the second quarter’s 15 per cent falloff.
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