Kumho, Nexen fined for restricting tyre resale prices
The Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) announced today that it has fined Kumho Tire and Nexen Tire for forcing South Korean retailers to sell tyres at or above specific set prices.
The Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) announced today that it has fined Kumho Tire and Nexen Tire for forcing South Korean retailers to sell tyres at or above specific set prices.
Kumho Tire reports that models of the BMW X3 manufactured at the BMW America plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina are being fitted with the Kumho Crugen HP91 as original equipment. The sport activity vehicle rides on the Crugen in size 245/50R19 105W; the tyres are manufactured at Kumho’s Gwangju plant in South Korea.
It may not be the best-selling Korean tyre brand worldwide, but at home Kumho outsells its domestic rivals. Data from the Korea Tire Manufacturers Association (KOTMA) indicates that 6.52 million replacement market Kumho tyres were sold in South Korea in 2018. This is more than 40 per cent of all locally-made tyres sold in the country.
Kumho Tire has once again been selected as an original equipment supplier to Mercedes-Benz. The latest generation of its G-Class model, produced in Graz, Austria, is factory fitted with Kumho’s Solus KL21 SUV tyres in size 265/60 R18 110H.
The partnership between Kumho Tire and Tottenham Hotspur FC that began in 2016 has been extended for a further three years from the start of the 2018/19 season. A new agreement covering this was signed yesterday afternoon at the football club’s training centre in the presence of executive director Donna-Maria Cullen and first-team players Heung-min Son, Victor Wanyama, Fernando Llorente and Kieran Trippier.
Under a technology transfer agreement signed with Pakistan-based battery manufacturer Century Engineering Industries, South Korean tyre maker Kumho Tire will provide technological and manufacturing know-how as Century establishes its own tyre production plant. The agreement signed in Seoul today covers the ten-year period to September 2028; Century Engineering will initially pay Kumho Tire US$5 million and 2.5 per cent of turnover for the assistance provided, with the contract scheduled for review after five years.
With immediate effect, Kyungtai Ju has been appointed the new president of Kumho Tire Europe GmbH. He replaces Changrin Suk, who will return to Kumho’s Korean headquarters with responsibility for global sales.
Building upon a successful working relationship that began two decades ago, Kumho Tire has appointed R H Claydon to handle its truck tyre distribution requirements for the whole of the UK mainland.
A new beginning, and also an end: 6 July, the date on which Doublestar Tire’s acquisition of a 45 per cent share in Kumho Tire was officially completed, was also the day a full stop was placed behind more than four years of technological cooperation between Yokohama Rubber and Kumho Tire. In a statement issued today, Yokohama Rubber informs that it terminated these tie-ups according to their terms and condition following the change in Kumho Tire’s controlling shareholder.
A ceremony was held on 6 July to mark to completion of Doublestar Tire’s acquisition of a 45 per cent share in Kumho Tire. The event in Seoul was titled ‘Celebrating New Beginning’ and was attended by the Chinese and South Korean tyre makers’ management teams as well as representatives from Korea Development Bank, which together with other creditors still maintains a 23 per cent share in Kumho Tire.
The Volkswagen Atlas is not just the newest member of the VW family, it is also the largest. The seven-seater SUV is primarily aimed at the North American market; however, this heavyweight is also expected to attract buyers in markets such as China, Russia and the United Arab Emirates. Kumho Tire reports that its Kumho Crugen Premium KL33 has been selected as an original equipment tyre for the Atlas, with models rolling off the Volkswagen production line in Chattanooga, Tennessee fitted with the tyre in size 245/60 R18 105T.
A new owner has arrived on the scene, but it is business as usual for Kumho Tire in Korea. The tyre maker has launched its first new tyre since Doublestar became Kumho Tire’s largest shareholder last month. More than 350 dealers from across South Korea attended the unveiling of the Kumho Majesty 9 Solus TA91 yesterday.
A very small percentage of Kumho Tire’s output in recent years was shipped to the Republic of Korea Air Force for its F-16 fighter and T-50 trainer jet, and this military business was a complicating factor in the sale a 45 per cent stake in the tyre maker to China’s Doublestar Tyre. Following the vote to accept Doublestar’s KRW 646.3 billion (£441.9 million) bid, Kumho Tire has requested that South Korea’s government cancel its designation as a defence-related company. This request is now being reviewed.
After months of uncertainty, union members within the Kumho Tire workforce voted on 30 March to accept the sale of a 45 per cent stake in the tyre maker to China’s Doublestar Tyre. It is understood that just over 60 per cent of voting union members were in favour of the sale, sparing Kumho Tire from receivership. The deal with unionised employees was sweetened by guarantees of their job security for at least the coming three years.
The clock is ticking, the labour union representing Kumho Tire’s workers still opposes the planned Qingdao Doublestar Tire acquisition, and creditor the Korea Development Bank (KDB) doesn’t think much of the alternative bid proposals announced this week. Time to find an alternative to liquidation is running out.
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