In addition to being the strongest brand globally, according to Brand Finance, Michelin has been named the world’s most valuable tyre brand for the third year in a row. However, the gap between first position and second-placed Bridgestone narrowed, meaning the Japanese tyre manufacturer is well-placed to regain pole.
The last time Tyres & Accessories took a close look at the aftermarket sector back in July 2019, we took the optimistic view that the UK aftermarket space would be able to weather the Brexit storm. Of course, back then Brexit and trans-Atlantic trade wars were the most significant pressures on aftermarket parts segment. Now, however, things are considerably more complex and unpredictable. So, in this analysis we examine the most recent pre-lockdown data as well the latest mid-lockdown information in order to answer the question: is the UK aftermarket still weathering the storm?
JATO Dynamics, which provides global automotive data, has David Krajicek as its CEO, effective 13 April 2020. Dr Krajicek has over 25 years’ experience. He joins from GfK where he had been at the helm as CEO of GfK Research since 2017.
Following the news that Volkswagen Group is planning to temporarily suspend production at its European plants due to the deepening impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, David Leggett, Automotive Editor at GlobalData, commented:
As the February 2020 issue of Tyres & Accessories goes to press, the United Kingdom is officially leaving the European Union after three years of intense dispute and debate. At the same time, 2019 wasn’t a great year for the automotive and tyre industries (see page 36 onwards for further details of what has transpired during the last 12 months). And with a no-deal scenario presenting the possibility of import tariffs on and parts, 2020 doesn’t look like it is going to be a whole bunch better. However, while the disappointing performance of the car and tyre markets is linked to Brexit, the issues are not one and the same.
Following the news that West European economies have had their forecasts for economic growth downgraded for 2019/20, analysts have concluded that suggestions of a slowdown in demand for trailers in the region during 2019 are likely to be correct.
Michelin’s predictions that market demand has been tough and will continue to be sluggish till at least the end of the year (see “Michelin predicts significant slowdown in car and truck tyre demand“ for further details) sent shockwaves through the financial markets. Shares started off bad, falling 6 per cent in early Paris trading to a seven-year low, but continued downwards and were down more than 9 per cent by mid-afternoon to 89.54 euros. Ultimately, shares in tyre manufacturers dropped by as much as 10 per cent on the day (Friday 19th October 2018).
The UK’s high performance tyre sector – in this case defined by tyre diameters of 17” and above – has continued its growth trend, but at a very much slower rate than in 2017.
The UK ultra-high performance sector (defined as 17-inch diameters and above) now represents some 38.8 per cent of the UK tyre market. That’s according to the latest market data produced by experts at GfK whose Point of Sales Tracking data compared sales in the period between May 2015 to April 2016 with May 2016 to April 2017. In order to better understand the high performance sector, Tyres & Accessories took a close look at the latest GfK information.
The global automotive advanced driver assist systems (ADAS) market will surpass 302 million units annually in 2022, according to new analysis from business information provider IHS Markit.
The tyre cord and fabric market will be worth over U$6 billion by 2024 on the back of robust growth in the automotive industry is the growth driver in the global tyre cord and tyre fabrics market size, according to a new report published by Global Market Insights. The US, India, Japan, China and South Korea are the prominent countries for the automotive sector and account more than 50 per cent of the global commercial and personal vehicle production in 2015. Growing middle class population along with rising consumer per capita disposable income in China and India will complement the automotive business growth by 2024.
As we transition into spring, many think of new-born lambs and flowering bulbs as symbols of the new life of the year ahead. However, for accountants and many others working in the finance side of things, the beginning of April marks the end of the tax year. Along with the end of the tax year come a reasonably regular slew of motorist spending analyses. Two such surveys caught Tyres & Accessories’ eye because they offer insights into what the tyre-related “cost of ownership” is in practical terms.
The Volkswagen Group has reported third quarter 2015 pre-tax losses of 2.522 billion euros as a result of the emissions scandal the firm is embroiled in. The losses are attributed to 10.2 billion euros of special charges in the first nine months of the year. In addition market observers are concerned about the firm’s continued corporate policy.
Automotive tyre manufacturers in Europe are focussing on electronic retailing (e-tail) to serve increasing customer preference for convenience and low prices, according to a new report published by Frost & Sullivan. Currently, tyre e-tail accounts for nearly eight per cent of the total tyre aftermarket in Europe. The report concludes that this figure will continue to rise as tyre manufacturers recognise the potential to access global markets through e-tail and invest in online sales and marketing tools to meet their growth objectives. Here Tyres & Accessories engages with the Frost & Sullivan data in order to better understand and begin to apply it to the current market context.
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