Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • European Rubber Journal
  • Plastics News
web
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • ITEC
    • Automotive
    • Tire
    • Non-Tire
    • Suppliers
    • Silicone
    • Latex
    • Coronavirus
    • Executive Action
    • Government/Legal
    • Opinion
    • Technical Notebooks
    • International Elastomer Show
    • Women in Tire & Rubber
    • HEXPOL Sponsored Content
    • Goodyear recognized by Lockheed Martin as 'elite supplier'
      EV tire advancements to help secure future
      Lambillotte: Only question on AVs is timing
      CAR official says EV future brighter than autonomous
    • Goodyear-branded transmission belts set to return
      Hot topics at virtual CES: AVs, air taxis and drones
      Apollo to raise prices of Vredestein brand tires
      China's tire production up in 2020
    • Greenergy, Haldor Topsoe tech turns tires to fuel
      India decides against extending carbon black duties
      GRI expanding ag tire capacity at 3-year-old Sri Lanka plant
      Apollo to raise prices of Vredestein brand tires
    • NewAge Industries celebrates 15 years of employee ownership
      India decides against extending carbon black duties
      WCCO task force navigates pandemic, expands communications
      JobsOhio funding gives Sperry & Rice room to grow
    • Safic-Alcan and Arkema working together on distribution deal
      India decides against extending carbon black duties
      Biesterfeld to supply Denka acrylate rubbers
      Ace Products & Consulting partners with Wallace Instruments
    • Ace Products & Consulting partners with Wallace Instruments
      Safic-Alcan extends distribution agreement with Momentive
      Momentive aims to grow silicone presence in Asia-Pacific region
      IRP Medical solidifies portfolio with KDL deal
    • WCCO task force navigates pandemic, expands communications
      ASTM cancels April meetings as COVID-19 continues impact
      Paycheck Protection Program funding reopens Jan. 15
      Detroit Auto Show canceled; alternative event being planned for September
    • ARP Materials adds technical sales manager
      Jack Murphy joins Akron Dispersions
      Adriano Alfani named Versalis CEO
      Maroon Group adds to Southeast sales team
    • India decides against extending carbon black duties
      Hot topics at virtual CES: AVs, air taxis and drones
      Paycheck Protection Program funding reopens Jan. 15
      Taiwan tire makers propose settlement of import duties case
    • Column: Pandemic looms over everything in life, business in 2020
      Column: Lessons from the 2020 Best Places to Work
      Editorial: Silicone hit hard by pandemic, expected to bounce back
      Column: Still far way from normal
    • Effects of multiple repurposed materials for reinforcements of standard rubber compounds
      Impact of peroxide blends on the cure rate and aged properties in HNBR
      Techniques to detect long chain branching in polymers
      A comparative study looking at effects of curing kinetics and batch variation on SBR injection molding and numerical analytics
    • Rubber Division seeks abstracts for 200th Technical Meeting
      WORD panelists say evolution, authenticity keys to success
      IEC keynote: Communication key to logistics
      IEC speaker: Specialized elastomers may reduce spread of life-threatening pathogens
    • WORD panelists say evolution, authenticity keys to success
      New video celebrates women in rubber industry
      ITEC panelists say women can thrive in tire industry
      Rubber Division planning second Women of Rubber event
    • Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Faster Access to Your Polymer Compounding Experts Around the World
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Take a walk thru a HEXPOL Lab
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      HEXPOL offers a unique selection of High Performance Elastomers to match your application requirements
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      It’s what you can’t see that makes the Difference at HEXPOL
  • Blogs
    • Products
    • Wacky World of Rubber
    • New Products: MonTech introduces 1,500 kN lab press
      New products: 3M introduces new durable, pliable medical adhesive
      New Products: Lanxess launches energy-efficient PU elastomer
      New Products: MonTech automates bale cutter for safety, productivity
    • Wacky World of Rubber: How Trelleborg, teens sealed a spot in the world record book
      Wacky World of Rubber: Of chicken and feet, but not chicken feet
      Wacky World of Rubber: Time to go mattress shopping
      Wacky World of Rubber: Because nothing says football like 'frunk' shrimp
  • Newsletters
    • Rubber in Automotive
    • Silicone News
    • Latex News
    • Sign Up for Newsletters
    • Goodyear-branded transmission belts set to return
      Hot topics at virtual CES: AVs, air taxis and drones
      Apollo to raise prices of Vredestein brand tires
      China's tire production up in 2020
    • Ace Products & Consulting partners with Wallace Instruments
      Safic-Alcan extends distribution agreement with Momentive
      Momentive aims to grow silicone presence in Asia-Pacific region
      IRP Medical solidifies portfolio with KDL deal
    • Jack Murphy joins Akron Dispersions
      Synthomer optimistic, raises earnings forecast
      Top Glove reopens COVID-hit factories with enhanced precautions
      Malaysia electronics group to enter rubber gloves sector
  • Multimedia
    • Videos
    • Photo Galleries
  • Directory
  • Resources
    • Classifieds & Mold Mart
    • Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Sponsored By HB Chemical
      The Company Behind the Inventory
      Sponsored By French Oil Mill Machinery
      Process Improvement, Cost Reduction with Custom Press Systems
    • Sponsored By Uncountable Inc.
      Cooper Standard deploys lab informatics platform to synchronize R&D
      Sponsored By Elkem
      LSR Select™: A solution to improve your financial impact in molding applications
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Peroxide Cureable Silicone Injection Molding
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Understanding and Selecting Performance Additives for Rubber Compounding
  • Data
  • Events
    • RPN Events
    • RPN Livestreams/Webinars
    • Industry Events
    • Past Events
    • ITEC Library
    • International Silicone Conference Library
    • 2021 Healthcare Elastomers Virtual Edition
      2021 Rubber in Automotive Virtual Edition
      2020 International Silicone Conference Virtual Edition
      2020 ITEC Virtual Edition
  • Advertise
  • DIGITAL EDITION
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Tire
December 01, 2020 10:01 AM

Rise in aftermarket tire demand leaves shortages

Bruce Davis
Tire Business
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print
    Best One of Indy photo
    Demand for tires is rising as U.S. residents ease back onto roadways, and that's good news for the replacement tire market.

    AKRON—As the year winds to a close, tire dealers throughout the U.S. find themselves coping with a growing dichotomy—rising consumer demand versus product shortages and looming price increases.

    According to nearly every market forecast, demand for tires and automotive services is on the rise again after the COVID-19-pandemic-induced collapse in the first half of the year.

    That recovering demand, coupled with the weeks-long shutdown of production at most North American tire factories, has created a shortage of product in most key categories, according to executives with Bridgestone Americas, Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. and Goodyear during recent conference calls.

    In Cooper's third-quarter results call, President and CEO Brad Hughes put customers on notice they would be experiencing product shortages in the fourth quarter and potentially into the new year as Cooper struggled to rebuild inventories following production shutdowns in the first half of the year.

    Richard Kramer, Goodyear chairman, president and CEO, echoed those views in his third-quarter earnings call, saying demand was exceeding both Goodyear's and the industry's expectations. The company is ramping up production, but demand was outrunning that build.

    During Bridgestone's recent 2020 consumer business conference, company executives acknowledged shortages as well, adding Bridgestone is tapping into its global production assets to bring in tires from Asia, Europe and Latin America to help rebuild inventories.

    In a call with Tire Business, Riccardo Cichi, Bridgestone Americas president and chief sales officer in North America, said his firm's research shows dealers are reporting 70-75 percent fill rates, down from the 90 percent most dealers had come to expect in recent years.

    Fill rates range from 50-90 percent, depending on the product category, he said. Bridgestone also is working with its dealers to use the full Bridgestone and Firestone portfolio to find substitutes where possible.

    In many cases, tire sizing in North America is distinct versus other regions, which makes it hard for U.S.-based manufacturers to source key SKUs, especially the larger rim-diameter SUV/CUV sizes, from overseas.

    This market anomaly may help explain why passenger and light truck tire imports from Mexico were up 27 percent and 39 percent, respectively, in the third quarter, according to Department of Commerce data.

    Light truck tire imports overall increased nearly 20 percent, the data shows, while passenger tire imports were down 2 percent from the 2019 quarter.

    Cichi also acknowledged that Bridgestone—and the industry in general—experienced a "flight to value" in the second quarter, as customers shifted to lower-tier brands. The situation has since eased, he noted, but the major brand makers have to be diligent and work with their dealer networks to rebuild brand equity.

    Independent wholesalers contacted by Tire Business, a sister publication of Rubber & Plastics News, confirmed shortages across various sectors, with one saying "some domestics are still playing catch up but import products are rolling in pretty strong from all countries."

    One wholesaler noted that smaller distributors are feeling the supply/demand pinch more than larger ones, who have more product in inventory.

    Some tire makers are looking to increase prices on certain products, while also experiencing some product shortages.

    In addition, the late onset of winter in most regions is alleviating pressure on the winter tire segment, another wholesaler said.

    One wholesaler said it expects the situation to worsen during the next several weeks, particularly in sectors where overseas manufacturers are active, including the specialty trailer segment.

    On the pricing front, entry-level product prices are rising in anticipation of the antidumping/countervailing-duty determination due before year-end on passenger and light truck imports from South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

    Exacerbating the situation is a growing shortage of containers in the Far East ahead of the holiday season. Some importers of record are assessing shipping surcharges on orders to secure shipping lanes for product, the wholesaler said.

    The third-quarter import data confirms in part the wholesalers' observations on these specific products and places of origin.

    While passenger tire imports overall were down, the data shows shipments from Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam all rose during the quarter, by 11.3 percent, 11.4 percent and 16.4 percent, respectively. Imports from South Korea fell 22.4 percent.

    In the light truck tire sector, imports from all four nations jumped by double digits: Taiwan, up 84.5 percent; Vietnam, up 67.9 percent; South Korea, up 21.8 percent; and Thailand, up 16 percent.

    Medium truck/bus tire imports fell 20.6 percent during the quarter, with Vietnam (up 94 percent), India (up 22 percent) and Colombia (up 58.7 percent) the exceptions among the 10 largest countries of origin.

    Among price increases enacted or disclosed in recent weeks:

    • Goodyear is planning to raise prices on all Goodyear- and Dunlop-branded passenger and light truck tires in the U.S. by up to 5 percent, effective Dec. 1.

    Goodyear cited the "changing market dynamics in the industry" for the increases, which it said "reflect the strong value of the Goodyear brands."

    Goodyear last raised consumer tire prices in North America on April 1, boosting prices on Goodyear- and Kelly-brand consumer tires by up to 5 percent.

    • Sumitomo Rubber North America Inc. will raise prices in the U.S. and Canada on Falken- and Ohtsu-brand medium truck tires by up to 6 percent, beginning Dec. 1, and on passenger and light truck tires up to 8 percent, starting Jan. 1.

    The action will include inline adjustments on a per-size basis, SRNA added.

    SRNA last raised prices on Falken-brand tires on March 1, by up to 5 percent.

    The Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.-based company cited several factors for the need to raise prices, including increased costs in both transportation and labor as well as other market factors.

    • Hankook Tire America Corp. plans to raise prices on its lines of commercial truck tires in the U.S. by up to 5 percent on Dec. 1, varying based on SKU.

    The tire maker said the hikes are due to the changing market conditions related to production and shipping costs.

    Hankook last raised prices on truck/bus tires in the U.S. in April 2019.

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Rubber & Plastics News wants to hear from its readers. If you want to express your opinion on a story or issue, email your letter to Editor Bruce Meyer at [email protected].

    SIGN UP FOR NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Rubber & Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe Today

    Subscribe to Rubber & Plastics News to get the best coverage and leading insights in the industry.

    SUBSCRIBE
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter

    MISSION

    To serve companies in the global rubber product industry by delivering news, industry insights, opinions and technical information.

    web
    Contact Us

    2291 Riverfront Pkwy, Suite 1000
    Cuyahoga Falls,
    OH 44221

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1726

    Resources
    • About Us
    • Digital Edition
    • Contact the Staff
    • Advertise
    • Order Reprints
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    • Terms of Service
    • Careers
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Partner Sites
    • Tire Business
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Plastics News
    • Plastics News China
    • Urethanes Technology
    • Automotive News
    • Crain Brands
    Copyright © 1996-2021. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • ITEC
      • Automotive
      • Tire
      • Non-Tire
      • Suppliers
      • Silicone
      • Latex
      • Coronavirus
      • Executive Action
      • Government/Legal
      • Opinion
      • Technical Notebooks
      • International Elastomer Show
      • Women in Tire & Rubber
      • HEXPOL Sponsored Content
    • Blogs
      • Products
      • Wacky World of Rubber
    • Newsletters
      • Rubber in Automotive
      • Silicone News
      • Latex News
      • Sign Up for Newsletters
    • Multimedia
      • Videos
      • Photo Galleries
    • Directory
    • Resources
      • Classifieds & Mold Mart
      • Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
    • Data
    • Events
      • RPN Events
      • RPN Livestreams/Webinars
      • Industry Events
      • Past Events
      • ITEC Library
      • International Silicone Conference Library
    • Advertise
    • DIGITAL EDITION