Premium-tire drive impacts Bridgestone sales in China

Tokyo – Bridgestone Corp. has noted a decline in replacement passenger car tire sales in China for the nine months of 2018, due in part to changes to its sales strategy in the country.

In an 8 Nov conference call, Bridgestone executives linked the replacement sales dip to trade tensions between China and the US, as well as to ‘macroeconomic’ factors.

Another factor, though, was the “deliberate controlling of the sales volume” in China as the tire maker adjusted its offerings in the market.

“In China, we are expecting sales to expand in the premium category and we are now trying to improve the quality of sales compared to the past,” said Akihiro Eto, CFO, executive VP and executive officer.

According to the executive, the ‘controlled sales’ strategy should only impact results in 2018.

Replacement tire sales fell 9% year-on-year in China & Asia Pacific during the nine-month period, according to a Bridgestone financial statement. This, however, did not include detailed figures for sales in the region.

Overall sales in Bridgestone's tire division rose 1% year-on-year to Yen2.22 trillion, helped by the growth in sales of large-rim size tires and large OTR ones.