The European tyre market experienced divergent trends across segments in May 2025, highlighting both resilience and ongoing pressures in a challenging global environment. In the PCR/LT OE segment, European demand remained 3% lower year-on-year while truck and bus demand grew two per cent. Both remained flat in the replacement market.
Michelin has published its Market Trends data for March 2025, and this shows no end to the original equipment sector decline currently affecting most markets around the world, with the notable exception of China. The tables turn in the replacement sector, with China’s subdued performance counterbalanced by growth elsewhere.
Michelin has published its tyre market trends for February 2025. Based upon sell-in data from local industry associations as well as Michelin’s estimate of sales by non-member manufacturers, these figures show a significant downturn in European original equipment markets, both for passenger vehicle and for truck tyres.
Michelin has published its latest analysis of the passenger car, light truck, and truck & bus tyre markets for January 2025, providing insights into year-on-year market trends. Against a backdrop of economic uncertainty and geopolitical challenges, varying trends were observed across different regions and market segments.
Traditionally a fallow month ahead of the introduction of new plates, August has continued the trend of new car registration growth in the UK. Announcing the figures, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders revealed that 72,163 new cars were registered in August, a 9.4 per cent rise on August 2013 and the 30th consecutive month of growth. Anticipation is now growing for September, usually a far busier month on the back of the plate change.
In Tyres & Accessories’ August 2013 Winter Tyre feature, we discussed the UK tyre industry’s continued deliberate steps towards the development of a winter tyre market, and the possibility offered by all-season tyres (which we’ll come to later). While the figures showed that sales of specialised products represent a much greater share of the market than you might have thought in the winter months, the correlative spikes in this figure remain confined to the months in which the weather is coldest. Market analyst GfK’s latest infographic on winter tyres, displayed on this page, goes further towards showing that this trend is prevalent even within the October-January period where winter tyre sales are most popular.
The IAM is calling for a national strategy of driving health checks and better information for elderly drivers and their families following a Vision Critical poll of 1,297 people. Vision Critical extrapolates that 42 per cent of the population is worried about an elderly relative driving, yet they are unlikely to do anything about it: […]
Kuwait’s high rate of urbanisation and purchasing power will lead to continued opportunities for imported passenger car tyres, a new report on the country’s automotive segment has revealed. With about 95 per cent of the country’s population residing in urban areas, and private car demand rising, imported PCR tyres have led tyre demand, though the TechSci Research report also suggests that commercial vehicle demand could follow increased mining and oil drilling investments.
The truck market was amongst the first to take steps to reduce costs when the credit crunch bit, but the flipside is that is also amongst the first to respond when conditions improve. And this is likely to have a knock-on effect on the tyre market that supplies it. Continental’s logic certainly fits with their figures. And the fact that marketing is growing again is evident based on the fact that UK and Irish truck and bus tyre replacement markets shot up 14 per cent and 5 per cent respectively in 2013. Now it is worth pointing out that these figures are based on ETRMA data which includes the top five and some other leading manufacturers, but not many of the imported brands that are popular to UK tyre buyers.
There are already signs that European tyre labelling is having an effect on the purchasing decisions of consumers, that’s the view of Continental representatives shared at the company at its recent annual trends briefing in London. Conti’s reading of market response to labelling follows a number of different view proffered by other manufacturer, supplier and retail sources. So far much of the data has suggested that the label is unused or unoffered and so therefore doesn’t have much influence.
While no-one is saying the climate is easy or the market is booming, Continental Tyre Group estimates that the worst is over and the UK market currently totals some 35 million passenger car tyres a years. Of course the fact that the same experts also suggest that around 10 per cent of this is made up of part worn sales remains problematic, but this is tempered by the fact that UK market has been leading Europe in terms of new car registrations recently, which all points to increased growth of large and higher performance sizes in the next two to three years. And what’s more Conti’s UK representatives suggest that the new European tyre label is already beginning to have an impact, despite other sources both agreeing and disagreeing with this position. Tyres & Accessories caught up with Continental’s passenger tyre segment brand manager (which includes car, 4×4 and van in the role’s remit) Peter Robb at the company’s annual trends briefing in central London on 6 December to find out more.
Continental estimates that the 2011 UK car, 4×4 and van tyre market will equate to 33 million units despite estimates from other leading tyre manufacturers earlier in the year suggesting demand could have been in for a double digit drop. Speaking at the tyremaker's annual market trends briefing in London, executives from Conti's UK operation (Continental Tyre Group Ltd) explained that the market has “remained static, with a number of evident developments, such as an increase in the part worn market due to the scrappage scheme.” Continental now estimates that part worn sales equate to 2 – 3 million units a year, with sales of these used products estimated to have increased by up to 50 per cent of the traditional and widely accepted 2 million units annually figure.
Don Baldwin, business segment manager for Michelin Americas Truck Tires, has ascended to the board of directors for the North American Council for Freight Efficiency, reports Tire Review. Baldwin, one of 19 original founders of NACFE, is the only tyre manufacturer representative on the board, Michelin said.
A US$10 million investment is being made to increase capacity at Cooper Tire & Rubber’s Findlay, Ohio factory. The funds, says Cooper, will be directed towards increasing capacity through automation, cost improvements and retooling to support market trends. The investment will also enable up to 100 new people to be hired at Findlay.
In order to celebrate the 5,000th sale of its Solus Pro hand-held diagnostic tool, Snap-on Tools, the supplier of tools, tool storage and workshop equipment for the UK automotive aftermarket, has announced the introduction of celebratory carbon fibre-look edition. Launched in May 2008, the Solus Pro is the second generation of the mid-range model of Snap-on's 'family' of hand-held diagnostic tools and it was specifically designed to provide the technician with an even faster performance and more diagnostic data.
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