Michelin Group has invested nearly $1.5 billion, its largest single investment in China, to open a new factory in Shenyang, the capital of Liaoning province. A company executive told the China Daily that Michelin expects its business in China to accelerate by two to three times in coming years. “As the largest auto market with solid and stable growth worldwide, the Chinese tire market is enjoying steady development,” said Jean-Dominique Senard, president of Michelin Group….

Continental Tire the Americas will invest $129 million to increase capacity at its Mt. Vernon, Ill., tire manufacturing facility. The tiremaker estimates the addition will create more than 100 new full-time jobs over the next three years. The investment will help meet increased demand for Continental and General brand tires, the need for better complexity management in the plant and emerging technologies in tire production, the tiremaker said. “Continental Tire the Americas continues to grow…

Taipei, Taiwan – The Taipei Times is reporting, “Taiwanese tire manufacturer Kenda Rubber Industrial Co. Ltd. said that it plans to invest NT $10 billion ($345.3 million) to build a new car tire plant in Taiwan, which will be a key part of its efforts to boost its revenue to NT $50 billion within next five years through diversifying manufacturing sites. The investment plan can only be achieved if the government helps the company find…

South Carolina media is abuzz with talk that Michelin North America is planning a major announcement regarding either a new tire plant or massive expansion. The Anderson Independent Mail stated that an announcement would be made today (Jan. 24), and that “Pete Selleck, the chairman and president of Michelin North America and Rich Kornacki, executive vice president and head of specialty product lines, will come to the Starr (S.C.) plant in Anderson County to make…

Natural rubber consumption in China, Cambodia’s largest rubber market, is expected to rise by 7.2 per cent in 2013 after growing by 4.5 per cent last year, according to the Singapore-based International Rubber Study Group (IRSG). Demand in North America was expected to grow 4.2 per cent this year after shrinking by 6.9 per cent in 2012, IRSG told the Post yesterday. In early December, the Post reported that low demand in China was keeping…

The global surplus for natural rubber may contract this year and next from a record in 2012 because of rising demand in the U.S. and in China, the biggest consumer, according to theInternational Rubber Study Group. Production is set to outpace consumption by 179,000 metric tons this year and 153,000 tons in 2014, said senior economist Lekshmi Nair, who estimates last year’s glut at 460,000 tons. The Singapore-based IRSG is an inter-governmental group of 35…

The latest tyre market data published by Michelin is being read as a warning signal by market analysts. The figures, which reflect demand trends in December and for 2012 as a whole suggest tyre sell-in unit volumes were weak. European light vehicle replacement sales, specifically, continued to slip (-7%), despite falling 19 per cent year—on–year in December 2011. Overall this is being interpreted as a response to a poor winter tyre season. In response to…

Thailand’s government plans to spend 17 billion baht ($535 million) to buy rubber at above-market rates to boost prices, Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong said. The government, through Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives, will provide funding worth 15 billion baht to state-run Rubber Estate Organization and grower cooperatives to buy rubber until the local price reaches 120 baht per kilogram, Kittiratt told reporters today. The plan will be sent for Cabinet…

Mumbai, India – How important is the auto industry from a point of view of the rubber industry? Today in India, a lot of R&D is done towards making automobiles greener. What are your thoughts on the role of rubber towards making this possible? The Auto industry is very critical as the bulk of the Natural Rubber (NR) and Synthetic Rubber (SR) is consumed in tires and auto components, which accounts for about 65% of…

China’s Shandong Jinyu Group wants to introduce itself to North American dealers, and has sent along information about itself and its Evergreen tire brand. Shandong Jinyu Group was founded in 1976, and has its fingers in a wide range of activities, such as real estate, furniture, construction, leasing, logistics, and tires. The tire unit was established in 1995 as Guang Tong Rubber & Plastic Factory, and it was renamed as Jinyu Tire Co. (Dongying) in…