Update: Sales rise steadies EU tire markets in first half

Brussels – Sales of tires in the European Union in June were boosted by a 14.6 –percent year-on-year rise in demand for new passenger cars, the European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers Association) ETRMA has reported.

In its latest market update, ETRMA said the market was further supported higher demand for OE demand for consumer and truck tires -  up 12 percent and 21 percent, respectively, compared to June 2014.

Replacement demand for June was also a “surprisingly high figure” too:  in car summer tires up 18 percent, and in truck tires up 7percent.

The June data firmed up the performance of the EU tire market over the first half of 2015: both OE and replacement tire markets have remained stable, both on consumer and truck tires. 

However, an exception to the positive trends was in agricultural segment, where ETRMA observed “a significant down trend, which is in contrast with the growing imports from China and India.”

In the second quarter of 2015,  the EU’s demand for replacement passenger car tires rose by 2 percent year-on-year, according to the report.

The truck tire replacement market grew by 4 percent in the second quarter. This was in marked contrast with the market for agricultural machinery tires’, which fell 12percent year-on-year.