BRUSSELS — Replacement tire sales in Europe were mostly down in the third quarter of 2017 and variable for the first nine months of the year, according to the latest figures from the European Tyre & Rubber Manufacturers Association.
Passenger replacement tire sales fell 2.6 percent in the third quarter to 55.8 million units from 57.3 million in the third quarter of 2016, according to the ETRMA.
For the January-September period, passenger tire sales fell 1.3 percent, to 157.8 million units, the association said.
Sales of truck and bus tires dropped 7.3 percent for the quarter to 2.49 million units, but were up 1.6 percent for the nine-month period to 7.35 million units, the ETRMA said.
Agricultural tire sales had the sharpest drop during the quarter — down 25.4 percent to 267,000 units — while nine-month sales fell 9.1 percent to 1.05 million units.
Motorcycle/scooter tire sales showed modest gains for the quarter and nine months, according to the ETRMA, rising 1.9 percent in the quarter to 1.83 million units and er and 2.5 percent for the nine months to 8.08 million units.