Rubber & tire industry in numbers

 PROJECTS

China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) has added new capacity for the production of 120ktpa SSBR and 80ktpa SBS thermoplastic elastomers at the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Industrial Park in southeast China. The SSBR facility also produces a small amount of low-cis polybutadiene rubber.

Dynasol has added 20ktpa of SSBR capacity with a new production line in Gajano, Santander, Spain. Dynasol first announced the expansion plan in 2022, which also included a 10ktpa increase for its styrene-butadiene copolymer (SBC) line in Altamira, Mexico. Prior to the new investment, the Santander site had 120ktpa of SBS and SEBS capacity. The Altamira site in Mexico has 110ktpa of SSBR and SBS capacity.

Dow Inc. plans to ‘restart’ additional production capacity for EPDM rubber at its Plaquemine, Louisiana site. Extra capacity is due on stream by Q4/25 in response to "growing global customer demand," stated Dow – without providing capacity figures.

Production of bio-based polyurethane (PU) from agricultural residues is the target of the EU-funded Promofer project, led by Aimplas, the Spanish institute of plastics technology. Backed by the ‘circular bio-based Europe joint undertaking’ (CBE-JU), the four-year programme aims to turn lignocellulosic feedstocks – including rice straw, wheat straw and pruning waste – into butanediol monomer for PU.

M&A & RESTRUCTURING

Sailun Group subsidiary Sailun (Shenyang) Tire Co. is to acquire Bridgestone’s truck & bus tire plant in Shenyang, China for RMB265m (€31m). The 10-year-old facility was idled at the end of 2023 as Bridgestone exited the TBR business in China. The unit has an annual capacity of 1.7 radial truck and bus tires

Sinochem Equipment Technology (Qingdao) Co. plans to acquire two machinery businesses in China: Yiyang Rubber & Plastic Machinery Group and Bluestar (Beijing) Chemical Machinery. Part of state-owned Sinochem, Sinochem Equipment specialises in process equipment for the rubber and chemical industries.

MARKETS & BUSINESS

Elkem Silicones reported marginal sales growth to NOK3.8bn (€327m) forQ2/25, with higher volumes partly offset by lower commodity sales prices. Earnings (EBITDA), however, grew substantially to NOK247m, from NOK45m in Q2/24, on “improved cost positions, operational excellence, and lower raw material costs.”

Sumitomo Rubber Industries (SRI) has formed  “game-changer” partnership with NEC Corp. to build “a globally competitive” R&D base and create new business opportunities. The link-up will tap involve NEC’s ‘advanced technology consulting services for high-level technology use and digital transformation’ and SRI’s manufacturing know-how. They also plan to apply SRI’s advanced rubber technologies in NEC’s business areas, while NEC will contribute its AI technology to support SRI’s new business ventures.

Linglong Tire was the largest supplier of OE tires for new energy vehicles (NEV) in 2024, according to consulting firm Frost & Sullivan (F&S). Linglong supplied over 9m OE tires in the NEV segment to carmakers such as Hongqi, BYD, Geely and Dongfeng Nissan. Citing 2024 sales figures, F&S said that Linglong sold the most passenger car tires in China last year.

IKEA Group is exploring more sustainable sourcing of rubber wood products in China through new talks with Hainan Rubber and the World Wildlife Fund. The three parties met in Haikou on 9 July to discuss sustainable development of the natural rubber (NR) industry, supply chain cooperation, and coordination on overseas plantation projects.

Sinochem Equipment reported a projected net loss of between Yuan14.7 million (€1.7 million) to Yuan22.1 million for H1/25. The company linked the decline to weaker investment and demand across the petrochemical and rubber tire sectors.

Danish distributor Bjorn Thorsen has been appointed to supply Celanese’s thermoplastic elastomers across Europe, under an agreement effective since the beginning of 2025.

SHARE PRICES

Leading tire manufacturers’ share-price trends

Leading rubber product manufacturers’ share-price trends

MATERIALS

Natural rubber 

NR futures remained stable during the first full trading week of July, buoyed by supply worries linked to heavy rains and flooding across southeast Asia. NR prices ended the week to 11 July “firmer” across all major exchanges amid fresh speculative buying and despite moderate trading volumes, reported Japan Exchange Group (JPX) 14 July. Severe weather hit northern and eastern Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and southeastern China. Firmer crude oil prices and speculation around potential new economic stimulus measures in China further underpinned rubber markets.

JPX: Selected rubber futures price trends on major trading exchanges

(ERJ calculation for selected futures) 

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