On April 16, ETRMA (European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers’ Association) released its figures for tire sales for the first quarter of 2020. Comparing the first quarter of 2020 to Q1 2019, there were 13% declines in sales of both passenger car and agricultural tires and a 6% decline in sales of truck tires. The impact is most apparent in the March data, when most of the shut-downs were instituted: comparing March 2020 to March 2019, there was a 26% decline in passenger car tires and 15% declines in both truck and agricultural tires. ETRMA estimated that 89% of Europe’s manufacturing capacity was closed as of April 7.
The drastic decline in tyre sales and replacements is partly due to the extensive measures taken by tyre manufacturers to protect the health and well-being of their employees and comply with government guidelines. This has led to the temporary closure of the European manufacturing facilities of almost all member companies. As of 7 April, ETRMA estimates that in Europe: 89% of manufacturing capacity is closed, 84% of the workforce is affected and 10% of R&D staff is unable to continue their activities. It is unclear when the European tyre industry will be able to resume its production activities and the international supply chain will be up and running again. Additionally, there has been a substantial drop in demand due to the national lockdown measures across the European Union, which have affected vehicle and tyre purchases, driving behaviour and the number of miles driven. Fazilet Cinaralp, Secretary-General of ETRMA states that: “Both the suspension of the operational activities and the sharp drop in demand will have a long-lasting impact on the performance of our industry. This is the biggest challenge our industry has ever faced.”
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