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Michelin Shares Receive Sell Rating

The German Helaba Trust has changed its advice for Michelin shares to a sell rating. The announcement pre-empts Michelin’s quarterly sales results, which are due to be released on the 11 February. In the first nine months of 2004 Michelin’s turnover increased 4.6 per cent to 11.7 billion euros. The analysts believe that company will record fourth quarter sales of 4.3 billion, a one per cent increase. Their report suggests that this growth has been largely driven by the commercial vehicle sector, which it predicts will have been responsible for 1.1 billion euros of that total. The trust also suggests that the company’s passenger car sales remained virtually flat, with sales only increasing 0.3 per cent or 1.9 billion euros.

7th February 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Sale Possibility Studied

Goodyear could gain $125 million (£67 million) if it were to sell its North American agricultural tyre business, according to a Merrill Lynch analyst. The report says the sale of the business, which currently produces 3.3 million tyres annually, could then save the company another $50 million annually. The Detroit News and Akron Beacon Journal both carried stories explaining that a Tyres & Accessories article reporting on talks between Goodyear and Titan International had prompted the analyst’s calculations.

7th February 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

The Ongoing Problem of Fly Tipping

A third of garages, tyre dealers and tyre repairers have had old tyres illegally fly-tipped at their site, according to a new survey published by the Environment Agency. Around 10 per cent said that it happened on a regular basis. The survey questioned 225 randomly selected garages and tyre firms about their knowledge and experience of tyre disposal. According to the Agency, fly tipping is usually carried out by cheap, unregistered companies that are operating illegally. Illegal disposal costs the industry, local authorities, the Environment Agency and landowners around £2.5 million a year, the report added.

4th February 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Study Suggests Trust More Important Than Price

Research carried out by the US Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA) shows that consumers rate product quality and trust above price when selecting a vehicle service provider. According to the Tire Review report, researchers discovered that the cost of service ranked seventh in the study. The report entitled “The Aftermarket Consumer: DIY or DIFM” looked into the factors affecting consumer decision making.

4th February 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Bridgestone NA and Unions Continue Negotiations

While negotiations between the USWA and Bridgestone/Firestone North American Tire (BFNAT) continue, it appears that union representatives may be preparing for some kind of on-the-job action. According to a Tire Review report, a BFNAT spokesman mentioned that talks are progressing albeit slowly. USWA-representatives at BFNAT plants have been working without a contract since April 2003. In November 2003, talks broke off all together and the two sides didn’t return t the bargaining table until December 2004.

On 2 February, a notice was posted on the USWA Local 1155L web site suggesting some “job action” may be imminent. The notice to workers at BFNAT’s truck tyre plant in Warren County, Tennessee stated: “The leadership of USWA 1155L, in an effort to facilitate mobilisation and strike preparation, regrets to inform our membership we are no longer accepting reservations at the Union Hall for its use. Prior reservations will be honored if the business of USWA 1155L allows. This effort will only be necessary until justice is served.”

4th February 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

ATS Trials Nitrogen Inflation

ATS Euromaster has begun a phase of trialling nitrogen filled tyres at 25 of its UK outlets through three companies, Pneu-Air, Parkers and Tyresafety, according to a Fleet Week report. The major selling point behind nitrogen inflation is that the gas does not leak through tyre materials as oxygen does. In theory, nitrogen-filled tyres can maintain pressure indefinitely.

Leigh Stote, business development manager at Pneu-Air, said: “Our Uniflate tyre installation will reduce tyre wear and increase tyre life by up to 25 per cent while improvements to miles per gallon figures will improve by 2 per cent.” The trial has been confined to retail customers, but ATS is reportedly keen to implement this scheme with major leasing companies.

3rd February 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear NA in the Black?

Goodyear North American Tire division president, Jon Rich, said his unit’s 2004 financial results would show its first annual profit in three years, according to a Tire Review report. Mr Rich made his comments at the company’s annual dealer meeting in Dallas. Aggressive cost cutting and high sales of Goodyear’s Assurance passenger tyre line led to the improvements in both sales and profits, he explained.

1st February 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Considers Restructuring Options

Goodyear Tire & Rubber is considering restructuring options, including the closure of North American plants, shifting work to “low-cost” countries and cutting an unspecified number of jobs, the Wall Street Journal has reported.

21st January 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Continental To Sell Another US Plant?

Continental AG reportedly plans to sell its Bryan, Ohio, OTR tyre production plant, according to a German Reuters report. Other sources indicate that the company is in talks with an unknown buyer. Continental declined to make any further comment.

The Bryan plant is said to have nearly 300 employees and the capacity to produce up to 300 off-the-road tyres each day. Last October, Continental sold its worldwide agricultural division to Ceska Gumarenska Spolecnost (CGS). As part of the agreement, the Czech company continues to produce and trade Continental, Semperit, Barum and Euzkadi tyres.

18th January 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Communications at Continental Automotive Systems

The Continental Automotive Systems division (CAS) of Continental AG has announced that Dagmar Weiner will assume responsibility for the division’s communications starting 17 January 2005.

She will oversee the internal and external communications of CAS, which specialises in vehicle safety, comfort and power transmission. The division also includes the electronics specialist Continental Temic and Continental Teves. Ms Weiner will report to the Continental executive board member Dr Karl-Thomas Neumann and to the director of corporate communications of Continental, Dr Heimo Prokop.

“I am very much looking forward to the task of communicating the Continental Automotive Systems division as a part of Continental AG, which leads in state-of-the-art technology for automotive safety worldwide,” commented Ms Weiner on her new position with the company.

13th January 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Good News for UK Manufacturers and Distributors

Plimsoll’s latest report issues good news for the UK tyre manufacturers and distributors industry by announcing that the value of 59 per cent of companies in the industry has increased in the last 12 months, some by as much as 50 per cent.

David Pattison, senior analyst at Plimsoll, explains: “Having valued many companies in the UK tyre manufacturers and distributors industry in the last two years, I am amazed that despite poor margins and low growth being commonplace in the market, so many of them have managed to increase in value. While 16 per cent of companies saw no change, only 25 per cent of the industry suffered a fall in value.”

12th January 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Fire at Conti’s Mount Vernon Plant

Officials have report that a fire broke out at the Continental General Tire plant in Mount Vernon, Illinois. No injuries have been reported. Fire and water damage was estimated to be more than $100,000. The fire is believed to have started when a welder working in the curing department ignited some chemicals. The resulting fireball burned through the ceiling, but was brought under control within half-an-hour. Employees were evacuated as a precaution, though plant operations resumed a short time later.

10th January 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Yokohama Launches ADVAN

Having exhibited some of its latest products at the year’s major automotive shows, including the Paris Motor Show and SEMA, Yokohama is officially launching its new ADVAN branded high performance products. The Japanese manufacturer has selected Dubai’s warmer climate as the venue for this event and promises the opportunity to experience the benefits of its products first hand. Tyres & Accessories will report from the United Arab Emirate of Dubai covering all the news on Yokohama’s latest products.

5th January 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear to Resolve Accounting Issue

Goodyear is to resolve some of its financial issues by working with South Pacific Tyres Australia to reach an agreement on how to account for $8 million through a supply deal between both companies.

According to news source Forbes, the tyre manufacturer is attempting to have this supply deal aligned under US accounting principles. The financial statements for South Pacific Tyres are prepared under Australian accounting principles, and then adjusted for use in the United States. These disclosures are required before Goodyear can file its amended annual report for 2003 with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

4th January 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Wing Lining Not Tyres to Blame in Concorde Crash

The combination of a rogue piece of metal and thin fuel tank lining, not the tyres, were to blam in the devastating Concorde crash of 2000, a French judge has ruled. The horrific accident claimed the lives of more than 400 people when a strip of titanium from a Continental Airlines DC-10 caused a puncture in the Concorde’s tyres. The shattering remains of the tyre punctured the aircraft’s thin fuel tanks, causing the tragedy, Judge Christophe Regnard’s report found. In the immediate aftermath Goodyear, the exclusive tyre supplier at the time, came under suspicion, with suggests that the tyre could have caused the disaster.

15th December 2004/by Tyrepress Editors