Crain News Service report
PARIS (Sept. 4, 2013) — The European original equipment tire market grew by 4 percent in July, while emerging markets are still growing fast, according to data released by Group Michelin.
Positive European and North American passenger car and light truck tire markets were in line with second-quarter trends, Michelin said, with the North American OE market showing 1-percent growth in July.
In China, OE figures were up 10 percent, while the replacement market was up 11 percent. In Brazil, the greatest increase was seen in the replacement market, a 16-percent rise, while the OE market grew by 3 percent.
For the year-to-date, Europe is still in negative territory for both original equipment (-2 percent) and replacement tires (-1 percent). North America showed some growth for the first seven months of the year in both OE—an increase of 4 percent — and the replacement market — up 1 percent, according to Michelin.
Both China and Brazil saw the OE markets grow by 12 percent in the year-to-date, while the replacement market is growing by 9 percent and 13 percent, respectively.
Michelin did not provide further analysis of the results.
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This report appeared on the website of European Rubber Journal, a UK-based sister publication of Tire Business.