WASHINGTON-Categories outside of the passenger and light truck markets also produced record year-end shipment totals in 1994, according to data supplied by the Rubber Manufacturers Association and the Rubber Association of Canada. By year's end, U.S. industrial/utility replacement shipments had reached 3.77 million units, soaring 20.8 percent over the year-earlier record of 3.12 million units. Original equipment shipments of industrial/utility tires jumped 7.6 percent to 9.3 million units, surpassing the previous record of 8.64 million, set in 1993.
Canada's truck and bus replacement category also set a new high in 1994, shipping 3.01 million units, up 7.9 percent over 1993's record of 2.79 million units.
Total year-end U.S. tire production was up in all categories except for heavy/large off-the-road truck tires, which dipped less than one percentage point from the 1993 total to 336,300 units.
Production of passenger tires was up 1.8 percent over last year to 201.1 million. Total light truck production increased 5.3 percent over 1993 to 29.3 million.
Year-end medium/wide-base truck tire production rose 9.9 percent over the year-earlier period to 13.0 million. Tractor/implement production finished 1994 at 3.66 million, 9.4 percent ahead of last year, while industrial/utility tire production soared 19.8 percent to 13.8 million.