Global Sales of Tires to Reach 2.9 Billion Units

World demand for tires is forecast to rise 4.3% per year to 2.9 billion units in 2017.  Growth in the tire market will continue to be led by developing countries in the Asia/Pacific region, particularly China and India. Global demand for tires will also be supported by improved economic conditions in the developed countries of Western Europe and North America, but gains in these regions will continue to trail the global average. Motor vehicles are the largest market for tires, accounting for 73% of global demand in 2012. These and other trends are presented in World Tires, a new study from The Freedonia Group, Inc., a Cleveland-based industry market research firm.
Freedonia analyst Elliott Woo forecasts, “The Asia/Pacific region will be responsible for the bulk of global tire demand gains, accounting for two-thirds of total growth through 2017.” China is the largest national market for tires in the world, representing 22% of global demand in 2012. Growth in demand for tires in China will not match the rapid gains posted over the 2007-2012 period, as expansion of both motor vehicle production and motor vehicle usage will decelerate. However, the market for tires in China will continue to be among the fastest growing in the world. Other major national markets for tires in the Asia/Pacific region include Japan and India, which ranked as the world’s third and fourth largest, respectively, in 2012. Sales of tires in Japan are forecast to decline through 2017, a function of a shrinking population and falling motor vehicle exports. India will post strong growth in demand for tires and is expected to surpass Japan as the world’s third largest tire consumer by 2017.
   Demand for tires in North America and Western Europe will show improvement relative to the 2007-2012 period, but gains will remain below two percent per annum in both regions through 2017. Stronger economic environments will result in advances in both new vehicle production and vehicle usage, supporting growth in demand for tires.  Slow growth in population and the motor vehicle stock will serve to constrain gains.  In addition, the losses in new vehicle production that occurred in both regions between 2007 and 2012 will not be fully recovered, as significant production capacity was permanently transferred to lower-cost developing countries. The US will continue to be the world’s second largest national consumer of tires, accounting for 13% of global demand in 2017.          

World Tire Demand (million units)

Item    2007    2012    2017    YoY Growth 2007 - 2012    YoY Growth 2012 - 2017
Tire Demand                      1977       2366      2915     3.7    4.3
North America                   447.1    453       496     0.3    1.8
Western Europe                   388.3    376       400    -0.6    1.2
Asia/Pacific                   792       1098      1465     6.8    5.9
Central & South America           105.7    141     184    5.9      5.5
Eastern Europe                   140.6    168     198    3.6      3.3
Africa/Mideast                   103.3    130     172    4.7      5.8