Ceat to increase Pirelli imports
Indian company Ceat is poised to treble imports of Pirelli radials to 15,000 tyres a month. Ceat claims a six per cent share of the radial tyre sector and is aiming to increase this to 10 per cent in the near future.
CEAT Ltd.
Indian company Ceat is poised to treble imports of Pirelli radials to 15,000 tyres a month. Ceat claims a six per cent share of the radial tyre sector and is aiming to increase this to 10 per cent in the near future.
For the second year running, Bridgestone and MRF Tyres have tied in first place in the JD Power Asia Pacific 2003 India Tire Customer Satisfaction Index Study, which examines customer satisfaction with originally-fitted tyres after 12 to 18 months of ownership. 2,700 owners were quizzed on 15 different attributes. The overall average score improved by 28 points over last year, reflecting the efforts made to enhance customer satisfaction. Top score was 768 (maximum = 1,000) and Bridgestone and MRF were closely followed by JK Tyres (766, just above the industry average of 764). Goodyear scored 751 and CEAT was the lowest, with 730.
Indian manufacturer Ceat Ltd has caused a stir by agreeing to outsource some 10,000 tyres per month from Pirelli. Recently Indian companies have sought to find cheaper alternative products by buying from other, lower cost markets but this move goes against the trend with Ceat importing higher cost, higher quality products from a world leading brand. The reasons are said to be to fill the gap left by the collapse of the Ceat – Goodyear JV to produce radials and to try and give the company a foothold in the growing radial tyre market without setting up another manufacturing operation in India. It may also offer a low risk opportunity to test the Indian market’s capacity for high quality, high cost premium brand products. The outcome of the exercise may alter the nature of the Indian tyre market according to some commentators.
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