AKRON—Goodyear posted record second-quarter net income of $213 million for the period ended June 30, paced by the firm's North American and Europe/Middle East/-Africa business units.
The quarterly results were driven by strong consumer replacement volumes worldwide, Chairman and CEO Richard Kramer said, offset somewhat by lower OE volume, primarily in Latin America.
The net result was 17.7 percent ahead of 2013, while segment operating income rose 7 percent to $460 million. Sales fell 4.9 percent to $4.66 billion, yielding an operating ratio of 9.9 percent.
Replacement tire shipments in all regions grew 6 percent, Goodyear said, pushing total tire volumes up 2.8 percent to 40.6 million units; OE volume fell 4 percent.
Segment operating income for the first half totaled $833 million, about 14 percent above 2013, driven principally by earnings growth in the North American and the Europe, Middle East and Africa business units, the company said.
The North American business unit's sales fell 7.1 percent to $2.04 billion despite 3.4-percent better unit sales volume. Revenue was dragged down by lower third-party chemical sales and lower price/mix, Goodyear said. Replacement tire shipments climbed 6 percent, while OE volume fell 4 percent.
North American segment operating income edged up 2 percent to $208 million, resulting in a one percentage point gain in operating margin, to 10.2 percent.
For the first six months of 2014, Goodyear's net income dropped 24.8 percent to $155 million, while sales fell 6 percent to $9.13 billion as tire volumes edged up 2 percent to 80.6 million units.
For the period, Goodyear's North American sales dropped 10.2 percent to $3.92 billion, while segment operating income rose 10 percent to $364 million, improving the operating margin more than one-and-a-half points to 9.3 percent.