Pirelli figures suggest improved European tyre demand

The latest Pirelli tyre market watch figures suggest demand is continuing to improve in the European market in both the original equipment and replacement sectors.

First off the European car tyre market (excluding Russia) showed a positive trend in April despite the unfavourable comparison. Mitigating the negative impact of this, Morgan Stanley analysts pointed out that April was one of the strongest months in 2013. At the same time Original Equipment (OE) tyre demand was up +2 per cent year-on-year in April (+9 per cent a year ago). Replacement market demand recorded a 3 per cent year-on-year increase (+8 per cent compared with a year ago).

There was a similar trend in Nafta where OE was marginally down (-1 per cent versus +14 per cent in April 2013) while replacement – net of imports – was up 4 per cent. Mercosur OE tyre demand in April continued to contract (-22 per cent year-on-year) in line with what shown in March. While being positive if we consider the Brazilian market alone (domestic production), the replacement channel in South America was down 5 per cent year-on-year in April as a result of lower imports and markets trends in Venezuela and Argentina.

Truck tyre demand also up

Truck tyre markets in April are also developing positively in Europe (+2 per cent Replacement) and Nafta (+13 percent Replacement, +5 per cent OE). However, Mercosur truck tyre demand was still negative in the OE channel (-26 per cent year-on-year) while the replacement market (-7% yoy) mirrored the dynamics of car tyres: contraction in imports, positive trend in Brazil local producers and lower volumes in Venezuela and Argentina.

Figures for the Chinese and Japanese market not yet been made available. cja