Moon Jae-in is South Korea’s new President, and this may be bad news for Qingdao Doublestar and its efforts to acquire a controlling share in Kumho Tire. In an article published earlier today, The Korea Times explored the possibility that Moon may prevent the Chinese tyre maker from acquiring Doublestar. According to the financial daily, analysts consider this a very real threat to the deal.
The latest development in the negotiations to sell a stake in Kumho Tire is that potential buyer Qingdao Doublestar Tire probably won’t, after handing over KRW 955 billion (£653.6 million) for the 42.01 per cent controlling share, be permitted to use the Kumho name.
South Korea’s Nexen Tyre has announced that the company ranked fourth out of 12 tyre brands in the passenger car segment of the 2017 JD Power Original Equipment Tyre Customer Satisfaction Study for the second consecutive year.
Nexen Tire has redesigned its global website, nexentire.com. The revised site offers information on Nexen Tire products, services, general tyre information, news and campaigns, and corporate information in a format that fits PCs, tablets and smartphones.
Final bids to acquire a 42.01 per cent shareholding in Kumho Tire are in, and Credit Cuisse, who has managed the deal, has requested additional time in order to review the bidders’ documents. Pulse, Maeil Business Newspaper’s English-language website, posits that the preferred bidder will be picked between 16 and 18 January, and the terms then sent to Kumho Asiana chairman Park Sam-koo.
A final round of bids for the 42.01 per cent controlling stake in Kumho Tire will be held on 12 January, and according to the Korea Development Bank and other creditors, a shortlist of five preferred bidders are in the running to acquire this share should chairman Park Sam-koo decline a prior offer to match the highest bid and purchase the 42.01 per cent stake himself. The five contenders are Apollo Tyres, Shanghai Aerospace Industry Corp. (SAIC), Jiangsu GPRO Group, Shandong Linglong Tire and Doublestar Tyre.
Solvay has commenced production of Highly Dispersible Silica (HDS) at its new state-of-the-art plant in Gunsan, South Korea. The plant has an annual capacity of more than 80,000 tons and is producing Solvay’s most advanced grades of HDS – many of which are used in fuel efficient tyre compounds.
Speculation is rife in South Korea regarding who’ll acquire the 42.1 per cent shareholding in Kumho Tire that is currently up for sale. Pirelli parent company ChemChina has already been named as a prospective buyer, as have Continental and Michelin. One tyre company can, however, be ruled out as a new Kumho Tire shareholder.
The official opening of the ‘Hankook Technodome’ took place today. The tyre maker’s new central research and development centre is located in Daejeon, South Korea, not far from its existing (and still operational) R&D centre, and is described by the company as “an embodiment of Hankook Tire’s strong commitment in R&D innovation” and a “core instrument” of Hankook’s global R&D infrastructure.
ChemChina is said to have expressed interest in Kumho Tire Co., according to Korean news source. Citing “industry sources” Pulse News said ChemChina “signed a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with creditors of Kumho Tire last month and began preparing for an official bid. The Chinese company selected Boston Consulting Group to advice on the deal.”
The creditors who hold a 42 per cent share in Kumho Tire are said to have begun the process of selling the tyre maker. Reuters reports a spokesperson for Korea Development Bank, the largest Kumho Tire shareholder, as giving November or thereabouts as the deadline for initial letters of interest, with main bids coming in or around January. Credit Suisse has been appointed to manage the deal.
It seems reports of the demise of the Department for Transport (DfT) were over stated. On 16 July – coincidently the day of the annual TyreSafe briefing – the new post-Brexit UK Prime Minister, Theresa May, embarked on a cabinet reshuffle. As it turned out this was no simple parlour shuffle, but a full-on single-hand pharaoh shuffle. As heads rolled and others moved in, while still others moved around, unnamed sources told The Telegraph that the Department for Transport (DfT) was being shut down. At the time, it looked like the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills and the Department for Energy and Climate Change were also being axed to make way for more streamlined departments for Industry and Infrastructure.
South Korean tyre industry machinery manufacturer Saehwa IMC is supplying PJSC Rosava the equipment needed to begin the production of 17-inch passenger car tyres. The Ukrainian tyre maker says it is currently working to modernise its production and has invested in the equipment and tooling needed for the manufacture of this rim diameter size.
Germany’s Continental AG is said to be discussing the potential acquisition of Kumho Tire, and is just one of several tyre makers apparently interested in purchasing the company. News of this development comes at a time when Kumho Asiana Group chairman Park Sam-Koo’s efforts to regain control of Kumho Tire have run into difficulties.
It’s almost four years since Gangnam Style fever swept the world and Psy enthused us with his catchy lyrics and equestrian dance moves. The South Korean performer still enjoys a strong following, particularly in his homeland, and Kumho Tire has capitalised on Psy’s popularity by collaborating with him to produce a new music video commercial. The result of this joint effort has now been released.
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