USTMA predicts record year for tire shipments

WASHINGTON — Buoyed by a healthy jump in replacement market demand for truck/bus tires, 2024 could turn out to be a record year for U.S. tire shipments, according to the latest data from the U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA).

The agency projects that U.S. passenger, light and medium/heavy truck tire shipments will hit 337.4 million units in 2024, surpassing both the 2023 total (331.9 million units) and the previous record set in 2021 (335.2 million units).

The revision a slight increase over what the USTMA forecast in March, when it projected overall industry shipments of just under 336 million units. Of the six categories the USTMA tracks, only OE truck/bus shipments are forecast to decline in 2024.

The biggest jump is expected in truck replacement tire shipments. The USTMA is forecasting demand of 22.6 million units in 2024, an 8.9% rebound from 2023, when shipments dropped 22.5% from 2022.

Replacement light truck shipments are slated to jump 4.7%, to 35.9 million units this year from 34.3 million units in 2023, while replacement passenger tire shipments, the largest category tracked, will remain relatively flat (221.2 million units this year versus 219.2 million units in 2023)..

Replacement passenger, light truck and truck/bus tire shipments will have a total increase of 5.4 million units in 2024, according to the USTMA.

Meanwhile, the trade association reported that original equipment (OE) shipments for passenger tires will be unchanged from 2023 at 45.7 million units, while OE light truck shipments are expected to increase 5.5% to 6.2 million units.

At the same time, medium truck/bus tire shipments will fall 5% to 5.9 million units.

The trade association — which represents a dozen tire companies with U.S.-based manufacturing capacities — did not provide reasons for its forecast.

The USTMA does not provide projections for manufacturing or imports/exports. In 2023 domestic production fell in all three major categories: passenger tire output down 5.1% to 95.6 million units; light truck tire production down 11.3% to 23.4 million units; and truck/bus tire output down 8% to 12.4 million units.