Michelin, Yokohama among those set to hike prices

Rising costs of raw materials are driving increased tire prices worldwide. Michelin North America Inc., Yokohama Tire Corp. and Marangoni Industrial Tyre are among the most recent to announce tire price increases.

Michelin said it would raise prices up to 8% for its passenger, heavy truck, earthmover, industrial-handling, agriculture and two-wheel segments across all of the company's brands in the US, Canada and Mexico.

Citing the effects of raw material prices as the reason for the move, the Greenville, South Carolina-based tire maker said this increase represents the first mark-up since 2012.

The increase, Michelin added, will be implemented separately by individual segments.

Yokohama announced that it would increase prices of tires sold in the US by at least 7% beginning 1 April. The price increase affects consumer, commercial and off-the-road tires.

"This pricing action is necessitated by the high cost of raw materials and freight expenses that have impacted us in 2016 and will continue to be a factor in the business," Rick Phillips, Yokohama Tire vice president of sales said in a news release.

Meanwhile, Marangoni Industrial Tyres announced it would increase sales prices for all products within its division by 6%, beginning 1 Feb. The tire maker said the move was driven mainly by natural rubber price hikes, a rise in tire demand and the weakness of the euro compared to the dollar.

Goodyear previously announced it would raise prices up to 8% on its full product range in the US and Canada.

Dynamic Tire Corp. disclosed earlier in January that prices for Sailun-brand passenger, light truck, medium truck and ST-type trailer tires in North America went up by 5-8% in January.

It cited the "significant and rapid rise of raw material costs over the past several months" for the increase, but said the brand's manufacturer, Sailun Tire Co. Ltd., is "making every effort to minimise these costs, while continuing to produce a premium quality product."

Carlstar Group is planning to raise prices globally on its full range of specialty tire products by 8 to 12%, effective on or before 1 March. The increases covers the Carlisle, Marastar, Marathon and Ultra CRT brands.

Separately, Carlstar said the increase for the ITP brand will be 5-8% across the entire tire portfolio, effective 6 Feb.

Carlstar Group cited escalating costs for raw materials as the primary reason for the increase and noted significant volatility in the market may require further increases.

European Rubber Journal contributed to this story.