MILAN, Italy (March 10, 2010)—Pirelli Tyre S.p.A. should achieve 6- to 8-percent sales growth this year based on continuing growth in the firm's emerging markets and recovering demand in North America.
Pirelli Tyre executives also expect the firm to achieve operating income on par with 2009, when the operating earnings/sales ratio hit 7.7 percent.
After experiencing relief from raw materials pricing last year, Pirelli Tyre sees an earnings “headwind” of up to $270 million from rising materials prices this year, according to Pirelli Tyre CEO Francesco Gori.
To offset this, Pirelli Tyre is targeting about $80 million in operational cost savings this year, he said, along with announcing price increases in most of the firm's major markets.
To keep pace with what the company sees as rising demand for its product, Pirelli Tyre is budgeting nearly $410 million this year to accelerate capacity expansions worldwide, including new plants in Italy and Russia.
Other projects on tap are: doubling car tire capacity in China, boosting car tire capacity 60 percent in Romania and 25 percent throughout Latin America; and expanding truck tire capacities 20 percent in China, Egypt and Latin America.