Rubber & tire industry in numbers

PROJECTS

China’s Shandong Yongsheng Rubber Group plans to build a tire plant in Morocco, with capacity to produce 6m units/yr of radial passenger car tires.

Continental is realigning its tire product portfolio in India: investing INR1bn (€10m) to expand UHP and premium PC/LT products at its plant in Modipuram, near New Delhi, but discontinuing its TBR business in the country. The cuts include a dedicated TBR manufacturing line in Modipuram.

Sailun Group expects to begin commercial production at its new tire plants in Indonesia and Mexico by the yearend. First tires rolled off production lines at the greenfield plants in Demak , central Java, Indonesia, and Guanajuato, Mexico, in late May. The $250m (€230m) Indonesia unit will have capacity to produce 3.6m tires/yr and 37ktpa of off-highway products. The $240m Mexican unit is designed to produce 6m units/yr of passenger car tires.

In India, PCBL is acquiring 116 acres of land in Naidupeta, Andhra Pradesh for its sixth manufacturing unit. In the first phase, the group plans to build a 150 ktpa unit mainly producing rubber grade carbon blacks. The land can eventually accommodate 450ktpa of production capacity,

Taiwan’s CSRC is launching a fourth production line at its site in Dahej, India. Operational since 2022, the unit has a carbon black capacity of 150ktpa. At its Ma’anshan unit in China, the group has completed trial production of sustainable carbon black, with a 25% TPO (tire pyrolysis oil) mix, with a goal of reaching 100% TPO usage by year-end. CSRC is also progressing a JV project to build a unit with capacities of 30ktpa of rCB and 35ktpa of TPO facility in Phenix City, Alabama.

Chinese rubber additives manufacturer Shandong Cabot Chemical has launched its first overseas manufacturing project in Cambodia. The project, located in the Snoul district of Kratie province, is currently in the equipment installation and commissioning phase.

Japan’s NOK Corp. has opened a new technology centre in Wuxi, China to strengthen its local development operations and support rising demand in the EV market.

M&A & RESTRUCTURING

Michelin is consolidating its production in Mexico into its light vehicle tire facility in Leon, Guanajuato and closing its plant in Querétaro by year-end. With a nameplate capacity of 6k units/day, the 480-employee Queretaro unit currently produces less than 500k/yr BFGoodrich brand tires for passenger cars and light trucks. The Leon unit has a nameplate capacity of 1.2k units/day.

Swiss elastomer component maker Datwyler will cease production at its 70-employee facility in Vadalia, Ohio by end of September and move the operations to Ontario, California and Twinsburg, Ohio. The Vandalia site combines manufacturing and distribution activities for the two Datwyler businesses units ‘mobility and general industry.’

Goodyear plans to close its tire plant in Kariega, South Africa, as part of a wider transformation of its EMEA operations. The unit has a nameplate capacity of 10k units/day for consumer and off-road tires.

MARKETS & BUSINESS

In China, ZC Rubber has gone public on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, trading under the stock code 603049. The group announced the listing on 7 June, following the issuance of 87.45 million shares at RMB 46.50 each on 5 June. The offer gave the company an opening market capitalisation of more than RMB45bn (€5.5bn).

Belgian group Bekaert has reported consolidated sales of €429m at its ‘rubber reinforcement’ segment for Q1/25, down 4% year-on-year. The €18m dip was linked to an unfavourable raw material and price mix impact of €23m.

Taiwanese carbon black producer CSRC reported a loss of NT$2.7bn (€79m) for 2024, as it pushes forward with restructuring efforts aimed at restoring profitability. The parent company of Continental Carbon finalised the sale of its loss-making Chongqing plant and shutdown down its Anshan facility in China last year, booking a one-time loss of NT$1.24bn

China’s Sailun Group has signed an off-road-tire supply and global framework deal with mining major Rio Tinto. Focused on RT’s Guinea-based Simandou iron ore project, the agreement runs from 2025 to 2030.

VDMA said 2024 was “another year to forget” for the German polymer processing industry. Adjusted for price changes, order intake fell by 21% compared with the previous year, and sales declined by 19% year-on-year, said VDMA without giving a figure. Production fell marginally to €8.83bn during the year, with capacity utilisation falling to 81%, compared to 86% the year before. Exports fell 6.6% year-on-year to €5.8bn.

Chinese automotive supplier Pengling Group has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with France’s Delmon Group to advance global resource integration and jointly explore international markets, particularly in Europe.

South Africa’s International Trade Administration Commission (ITAC) has imposed provisional anti-dumping duties on tires from Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia, after a preliminary finding that Chinese producers are circumventing existing duties through the three countries.

Japan’s Fukoku Co. Ltd reported net sales up 0.9% yoy to Yen89.6bn (€550m) and operating profit up 29.5% to Yen4.7bn for the fiscal year ended 31 March – despite rising materials and labour costs. This included sales (earnings) changes of: +5.5% to Yen41bn (+15.3% to Yen5bn) at Functional parts, incl seals, wiper blades: 1.1% to Yen38bn (+33.9% to Yen2.8bn) at the AVS parts business; and -11.0% to Yen4.8bn (+ 8.1% to Yen205m) at the Hoses unit.

SHARE PRICES

Leading tire manufacturers’ share-price trends

Leading rubber product manufacturers’ share-price trends

MATERIALS

Natural rubber 

Natural rubber futures ended the week mixed across major exchanges, amid signs of improvement in US-China trading relationship. While most major Far East exchanges witnessed growth, gains were capped by concerns over rising production levels as the wintering season concluded, reported Japan Exchange Group.

JPX: Selected rubber futures price trends on major trading exchanges

(ERJ calculation for selected futures)

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