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Carlisle Reports Reduced Q3 Net Income

Carlisle Companies Incorporated has reported net sales of US$832.5 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2008, a 14 per cent improvement over net sales of $730.4 million in the third quarter of 2007. Transportation product net sales were $205.2 million for the third quarter 2008, an increase of six per cent compared with net sales of $193.3 million in 2007. Softness in the consumer outdoor power equipment (OPE), high-speed trailer tyre and wheel, and styled wheel markets was offset by growth in the commercial OPE, ATV, and agricultural and construction tyre and wheel markets. Sales growth for specialised and pneumatic trailers more than offset continued softness in construction trailers, says the company.

27th October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Details of Bridgestone – Toyo Business Alliance Released

Following the May 16, 2008 conclusion of a basic agreement over a business and capital alliance, Bridgestone Corporation and Toyo Tire & Rubber have engaged in discussions in order to, as reports Bridgestone, “create increased efficiencies and generate synergistic efforts” in a number of areas. The two companies have agreed upon a number of initiatives, which have now been made public. The planned joint undertakings cover a number of business areas – tyre production technology development, the procurement of materials and equipment, cross production, logistics and the entry into businesses other than tyres.

27th October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Apollo Quarter Results Reflect Tough Times for Industry

Upon reporting Apollo Tyres’ second quarter 2008 results, a quarter in which consolidated net profit dropped 74 per cent on the previous year, company chairman Onkar S Kanwar stated that, despite difficult times, Apollo retains a positive outlook for the future. “It has been a testing quarter for the company and us as an industry, but I do believe that the worst might be behind us and it’s time to plan for the future,” he said. “The positive that I take from here is a consistent growth in sales, especially in South Africa, where we are able to now reap the benefits of our manufacturing and marketing excellence with a near 30 per cent sales growth this quarter.”

23rd October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

For Yinbao Tyre, imitation is the highest form of flattery

International News, News

Western European manufacturers’ complaints that their products have been copied in the Far East are well reported. However, Shandong Yinbao Group is one of a select few Chinese tyre manufacturers that have suffered product piracy too.

According to international marketing manager Gavin Liu, the Shouguang-based Yinbao Group recently discovered that its growing off-the-road (OTR) product range was being copied, with the pirates making use of the company’s Goodtyre name: “We have found some faked tyres recently in the market copying the Goodtyre brand name of OTR products – which is both damaging and illegal.” Fighting back in a letter to customers, Yinbao representatives wrote: “Companies and people who undermine the interests of clients and reputation of our group will be investigated for legal responsibility according to law.”

23rd October 2008/by Chris

Bridgestone Released Mid-term Management Plan 2008

Bridgestone Corporation has released details of its “Mid-term Management Plan 2008” (MTP2008), which covers the period 2009 through 2013. The outline of the plan is as follows.

1. Basic Approach to MTP2008 Formulation

Bridgestone has formulated MTP2008, which covers the period 2009 through 2013, which is one year further on from MTP2007 (2008 to 2012). In making the revisions, Bridgestone updated and added initiatives in response to recent changes in the business environment, including changes in demand trends and the cost environment, in order to achieve the goals set in MTP2007.

22nd October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Bridgestone Opens Carbon Black Plant in Mexico

On October 17, Mexico Carbon Manufacturing SA DE CV (MXCB), a wholly owned member of the Bridgestone Group, officially opened its new carbon black production facility in Altamira, Mexico. Output from the new plant, which is forecast to be approximately 35,000 tons per annum, will be supplied to Bridgestone’s tyre factories in North America as well as Central and South America.

The MXCB operated 430,000 square metre facility, which employs around 100 workers, is the Bridgestone Group’s third plant dedicated to the production and supply of carbon black. The other two are located in Japan and Thailand.

20th October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Sees No Relief Until Late 2009

Groupe Michelin officials said today that they don’t expect to realize “the full benefit” of a current downturn in raw materials prices until next year. Speaking at the company’s shareholders’ day, Michelin co-managing partner Didier Miraton said the decline in the prices of oil and natural rubber will take time to feed through, perhaps into the second half of 2009. (Tire Review/Akron)

17th October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Cheaper Rubber Doesn’t Equal Cheaper Tyres – Indian Manufacturers

Despite the prices for natural rubber in India dropping more than 32 per cent in the last two months, tyre manufacturers in this country appear reluctant to follow suit with their own prices. The price of natural rubber fell below the Rs 100 ( ) a kilogram mark on October 7, the first time it has done so this year after rising to a high of Rs 140 ( ) per kilogram in August. The fall in the price is attributed to a decline in crude oil prices and a slide in international rates for latex. Further decreases in the price of natural rubber are also expected in India, the result of peak production season supply and diminished purchasing from industrial users.

10th October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Cooper Reopens Ike Affected Factory

Cooper Tire’s Albany factory is back in production and its 1,000 employees working again, the supply of raw materials having resumed several weeks after Hurricane Ike created havoc amongst the region’s industry. “This is a situation that a lot of companies are going through,” commented Cooper Tire vice president of Branding and Communications Pat Brown. “We are trying to make the impact as minimal as possible.”

8th October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Yokohama to Delay China Facility Expansion

It seems likely that Yokohama Rubber’s plans to expand output in China may be delayed by several months due to reduced demand and a potential oversupply of tyres. In an interview with Reuters, company president Tadanobu Nagumo discussed the company’s current position, warning that stocks and currencies losses would cut into Yokohama’s net profit in the first financial year half. To then boost profit margins, Nagumo said he would consider eliminating OE contracts with some vehicle manufacturers.

7th October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

The Quiet Achiever

Yokohama Tire admits that an OTR division is typically not the highest profile area in a tyre company’s hierarchy – yet it’s one of the most profitable. While they produce and sell the world’s largest and heaviest tyres, it is the consumer and, to a lesser extent, commercial divisions that receive most of the limelight. To set the record straight, Yokohama Tire USA has interviewed two key members of its OTR division, director of OTR sales Gary Nash and national sales manager Nelson Richards. The two men discuss the inner workings of Yokohama’s OTR department, the marketplace and the future of OTR.

6th October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Was Ready for Storms

Despite taking hits from recent Gulf Coast hurricanes, Goodyear says it has no concerns about raw material supplies for its tire production. The tyremaker said its synthetic rubber plants “returned to operation quickly due to the effectiveness of the company’s business continuity efforts.”

The plants in Beaumont and Houston, Texas, were closed in advance of Hurricane Ike making landfall on Sept. 13. “The short production interruption and minimal business impact resulted from our comprehensive business continuity process, which was enacted in advance of the hurricane’s landfall,” Goodyear said. “In addition, contingencies were put in place to obtain critical raw materials for the company’s tire manufacturing facilities.”

“We’re extremely pleased by the way our Business Continuity process works, and how we were able to quickly get our operations running after the hurricane,” said Bob Keegan, chairman and CEO. “We see the management of this process as a real competitive advantage in these types of circumstances.” (Tire Review/Akron)

6th October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

US Passenger Car Sales fall 27% in September

The US auto industry has sustained considerable sales haemorrhaging in September, with figures plumbing 15-year depths, while US Department of Transportation year-on-year figures reveal that driving miles by Americans continued to fall in July 2008. In addition the harbingers of doom were prevalent among top car manufacturers: BMW, Ford and Renault all agree that the slump could be the beginning of a more sustained slump than previously predicted.

Financial news sources site comments from Norbert Reithofer, Alan Mulally and Carlos Ghosn – the CEOs of the three aforementioned giants – suggesting that predictions of a swift recovery may have to be put on hold. Ghosn told journalists at the Paris Auto Show, “We don’t know if we’re at the beginning of the end or the end of the beginning,” turning down requests to reiterate earnings targets.

3rd October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Supporting Audi Mileage Marathon

On October 1 Michelin’s Green X energy saving tyres set out on a 15-day, 4,800 miles journey across America, fitted to Audi clean diesel vehicles. Audi Q5 and Q7 models have been fitted with Michelin Latitude Tour HP tyres, and A4 and A3 cars with Primacy HP tyres for the Audi Mileage Marathon journey, which is been undertaken to increase public awareness of environmentally friendlier automotive equipment and technology.

2nd October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Suspends Production at Gadsden Plant – Again

Goodyear’s tyre factory in Gadsden, Alabama, has again been shut down of a week due to a shortage of raw materials and to reduce the company’s overall tyre production, company officials announced on September 29. This is the second such recent occurrence for the Gadsden plant; between August 16 and September 2 the facility was closed for an ‘inventory adjustment’.

2nd October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors