WASHINGTON — Much like the "Tale of Two Cities," the U.S. tire market in 2022 was a tale of two divergent trends, one quite positive, one rather disappointing.
On the positive side of the ledger, shipments, production and imports of medium truck/bus tires all grew by double-digits, with shipments and imports hitting record levels of 26.8 million and 23.6 million units, respectively, according to Tire Business' analysis of the latest industry data from the U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA).
The rise in shipments reflects robust trucking activity throughout the year. According to the American Trucking Associations, tonnage shipped by truck last year was up 3.4%, the best annual gain since 2018 despite a "marked slowdown" toward year-end.
Production of truck/bus tires edged up 0.2%, or roughly 25,000 units, to 13.5 million units, falling short of the recent pre-pandemic peak set in 2019.
As a result, imports' share of U.S. replacement market truck/bus tire shipments rose again, to nearly 89% — although "captive" imports (those brought in by USTMA member companies from their off-shore affiliated companies) account for over 60% of imports, leaving the "true" import share at closer to one-third.
In the passenger tire sector, shipments and production both fell, by 4.6% and 5.4%, respectively, to 214.1 million and 100.7 million units, the USTMA data show. By contrast, imports rose 4.6% to a record 163.5 million units, and now represent over three-fourths of replacement passenger tire shipments.
Light truck tire production edged up slightly over 2021, the USTMA data show, but aftermarket shipments dropped 3.7% to 37.2 million units, declining for the first time in four years. Imports rose 4.9% to gain market share again.
The disappointing full-year aftermarket passenger and light truck tire shipments report was driven in large part by a second-half slump, a shift in demand that the USTMA acknowledged in early December when it released its preliminary forecast for 2022.
At that time, the USTMA cited a number of contributing factors, including inflation, higher interest rates, risk of recession, higher dealer inventories, lower vehicle sales and a reduction in vehicle miles traveled due to continued work-from-home status and high gas prices.
This combination of factors resulted in an anomaly the trade group said it's experienced only one other time in the past 30-plus years — replacement passenger and light truck tire shipments were higher in the first half of the year than in the latter half.
After a couple of off years, original equipment tire shipments improved by double-digits across the board, reflecting the vehicle industry's ability to resolve most supply-chain-related issues that had impacted production the past two years.
OE tire shipments:
- passenger, up 11.1% to 41.6 million units;
- light truck, up 11.4% to 6.3 million units; and
- medium truck/bus tires, up 10% to 6.5 million units.
These and other relevant industry data are contained in the USTMA's preliminary 2023 statistics bulletin. The Washington-based trade group offers an annual data summary for sale. The final 2023 version will be available in the coming weeks.
