Tyres can’t function without this critical raw material. Whether its natural or synthetic rubber you are interested in, articles bearing this tag feature this indispensable polymer.
On 8 August Cooper Tire & Rubber announced a quarterly dividend of 10.5 cents per share on common stock, payable 28 September 2012 to stockholders of record at the close of business 4 September 2012. This will mark the 162nd consecutive quarterly dividend the company has paid.
Generations of Australians growing up in Sydney’s north have fond memories of the “tyre man” who sat perched on the hill above the beachside suburb of Manly. The tyre man, a dummy atop a pole ringed by close to 100 tyres, maintained his vigil over Manly for more than 80 years; local newspaper the Manly Daily reports that the tyre man is, alas, no more.
Japanese tyre maker Sumitomo Rubber Industries and Singapore’s Stamford Tyres Corporation have announced plans to establish a joint venture sales company in India. The operation, Falken Tyre India Private Limited, will start business in April 2013 and be 60 per cent owned by Sumitomo Rubber subsidiary Sumitomo Rubber Asia (Tyre) PTE. Ltd, with Stamford owning the remaining share. Falken Tyre India will focus on India’s replacement tyre market; Sumitomo says it will supply tyres that “meet the local needs.”
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has announced that it will make a business presentation to be webcast from the JP Morgan 2012 Auto Conference in New York on 13 August. Darren R Wells, executive vice president and chief financial officer, will provide a business overview and discuss the company’s strategies for approximately 35 minutes.
Continental has appointed ex-Bridgestone Europe communications vice-president Des Collins head of its new Liaison Office for Public Affairs in Brussels, Belgium. This new office in the European Union’s political capital opened on 1 August, and Collins takes responsibility for representing the legislative and regulatory interests of both Continental’s Rubber and Automotive Groups.
Roderick A. Palmore, executive vice president, general counsel, chief compliance and risk management officer, and secretary for food multinational General Mills, Inc., has been elected to Goodyear Tire & Rubber’s Board of Directors.
Michelin’s newest tyres, the Energy Saver + passenger car tyre and the Agilis + light commercial vehicle tyre score good results on the European tyre label, with the former’s sample size achieving B in fuel efficiency and A in wet grip and the latter’s scoring CB (both with two sound waves at 70dBs if you’re really interested). But at the French manufacturer’s recent event in Stockholm, Sweden to mark the end of its Performance Tour 2012, Michelin representatives preferred to talk about the full range of characteristics developed for its latest tyres than to dwell on good labelling results. Marketing director, Gary Guthrie told Michelin’s guests that the “information contained on the tyre label is terrifically important, [but] it has never been [Michelin’s] philosophy” to focus on selected criteria.
An analyst in India opines that JK Tyre & Industries is currently a very good investment, and he states that shares in the company may be capable of achieving gains as high as 40 per cent over the coming half year or so. Aashish Tater, head of research at Kolkata-based Fort Share Broking, told Indian business news broadcaster CNBC-TV18 that there is a “bullish call” on the tyre sector, and he named Goodyear India and JK Tyre & Industries as the broker’s “prime picks.” Tater particularly feels that the second of these offers opportunities for investors.
According to Bloomberg, China’s consumption of natural rubber will most likely decline this year due to lower demand for commercial vehicle tyres in wake of decreasing truck sales and slowing economic growth. The media company reports Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Co chairman Shen Jin-Rong as saying consumption may decrease by as much as five per cent.
Continental has cut the ribbon on a new £8.5 million mixer at its Port Elizabeth tyre making plant in South Africa. Nikolai Setzer, member of Continental's Executive Board and head of the company’s global tyre business, was on hand to do the honours. Continental says the new mixer, which was imported from Germany, allows for superior temperature control during the mixing cycle, enabling a more accurate reproducibility of compounds and better dispersion of the fillers.
The China Rubber Industry Association reports that 83.147 million tyres were produced in China during June 2012; this figure represents a 19 per cent year-on-year growth and an increase of 8.53 per cent over May 2012. During the first six months of 2012, China's tyre production reached 430.53 million units, a growth of 12.3 per cent over the first half of 2011.
Cooper Tire & Rubber reports it can now offer SmartWay approved Roadmaster truck tyres for all wheel positions following the verification of a number of fitments, including the Roadmaster RM180 steer tyre, RM871 trailer tyre, and most recently, the RM851 drive tyre. The SmartWay programme, run by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, aims to promote low rolling resistance, and only tyres that meet set criteria can be SmartWay certified.
On 2 August Yokohama Rubber announced its entry into an off-take agreement with Shandong Xingda Tyre Co., Ltd., a manufacturer of off-the-road tyres for construction and mining vehicles. Under the terms of this basic agreement, Yokohama Rubber will provide Shandong Xingda Tyre with technical support regarding OTR radial tyres and in return will off-take a fixed quantity of OTR tyres manufactured by Shandong Xingda Tyre.
On the back of its second quarter results, which nearly matched those attained in the first quarter, Continental sees itself “on track for another record year.” Commenting on the German tyre and automotive supplier’s performance to 30 June, Executive Board chairman Dr. Elmar Degenhart stated “based on the successful first half of the year, we are confident that we will comfortably achieve the goals we have set for the year. Nonetheless, we must continue to keep a close eye on the uncertainties on the global sales markets, the difficult economic situation in some European Union member states and the slowdown in global economic growth.
A location has been found for the US-based guayule research farm and process research centre that Bridgestone Corporation intends to set up. A 281-acre site in Eloy, Arizona has been acquired for guayule farming activities, and Bridgestone Corporation will establish a process research centre in nearby Mesa, Arizona together with Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations.
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