HANOVER, Germany (March 3, 2017) — Continental A.G.'s Rubber Group posted a 2 percent rise in sales at nearly $17 billion for the full year 2016, the German company announced.
Earnings for the rubber business rose 11 percent to $3.8 billion compared to 2015, with both Tire Division and ContiTech posting growth.
The Tire Division's earnings (EBITDA) were up from $2.75 billion to $2.97 billion in 2016, while ContiTech also posted a sharp rise of 26.6 percent in earnings at $776 million.
Sales in the ContiTech recorded organic growth of 2.5 percent to $5.84 billion.
In the Tire division, the company sold a "record" volume of 150 million passenger car and truck tires, Chief Financial Officer Wolfgang Schaefer said during a March 2 Continental media webcast.
Sales in the Tire division registered organic growth of 4.7 percent to $11.36 billion. The adjusted EBIT margin rose to 21.7 percent.
"Thanks to this record result, the Tire division contributed more than half of adjusted consolidated EBIT," Mr. Schaefer added.
The division also acquired two major businesses during 2016 — Bandvulc in the U.K. and Hoosier Racing Tire in the U.S. The Hoosier acquisitions, Mr. Schaefer noted, has further added to Conti's expertise in the field of ultra-high-performance tires.
For 2017, the Rubber Group expects raw material costs to have a negative impact of $530 million on its results in, according to Mr. Schaefer. This is while the company enjoyed a $159 million positive impact of lower raw materials prices in 2016.
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Shahrzad Pourriahi is a reporter with European Rubber Journal, a London-based sister publication of Tire Business.