Modern Tire Dealer - June 2021

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Commercial truck tires

“Increased COVID-19 inoculations and the resulting opening of the economy, combined with pent-up demand for truck tires to refill shelves, point to a strong second half,” says Dave Johnston Sr., manager, commercial products and business development, Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp.

risk factors — such as lagging replacement supply due to port congestion and increasing OE demands — will eventually bring down sales of TBR tires in the second half. CUMO (MICHELIN): The need for increased capacity within an expanding economy will give fleets incentives to continue expansion. OE markets are back on the upswing and the replacement tire market should benefit from the maintenance cycle of vehicles purchased within the past few years. COLTRANE (PRINX): Trucking will increase, trying to get more product inland from ports. This will mean more long-haul miles. The question is how much the (truck) driver shortage will impact that. EAGLESON (SAILUN): Like all manufacturers and shippers of goods, the cost of raw materials has been impacted by freight cost. As we’ve continued to communicate to our valued customers, it looks like the current freight issues will continue through the rest of 2021 and into 2022. As life returns to some semblance of normal, service-based spending may also return. Until then, the majority of consumer goods being purchased are transported by ship, rail and road. Truck tires are a big component of that delivery chain. KLIMM (SRNA): Demand will continue to increase throughout the second half of 2021. The industry recovery will be segmentdriven as we reopen the market for commerce. As industry continues to open up and restrictions are pulled back, we expect to see an aggressive uptrend in the replacement tire business. The last-mile segment will increase tire replacement behavior and timing, (as) 19.5-inch is now the third most popular size in the OE industry. DASHIELL (TBC): Global logistics issues due to COVID-19 will continue to challenge the commercial truck tire market, especially on import tires. Demand for low-profile tires also will continue, while a resurgence of urban market tires will occur as the economy rebounds. GONZALEZ (TGI): From a market perspective, I expect

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demand to remain strong. The challenge will be securing enough product to meet it. From a product perspective, I think we will continue to see migration from traditional long-haul and regional applications to more of a super-regional, all-in-one tire. This is from manufacturers rolling out new generations of models, as well as meeting today’s driver demands. JOHNSTON (TOYO): The second half of 2021 is expected to continue on a strong growth path. Increased COVID-19 inoculations and the resulting opening of the economy, combined with pent-up demand for truck tires to refill shelves, point to a strong second half. Logistics bottlenecks, combined with high shipping volumes, will need to balance with market demand to improve the situation. Equipment demand and driver shortages should start to improve as we near the end of 2021 and fleets are poised to grow as they ramp up to meet unprecedented demand in several sectors. LUTHER (TRIANGLE): With the ongoing recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, we anticipate growth in the TBR market for the rest of 2021, going into 2022. Product shortages exacerbated by the pandemic and the onslaught of the global logistics breakdown have created some chaos in the potential growth of the TBR market. However, demand is there that will easily drive a growth market for TBR products, if the industry is able to deliver. SHEEHEY (YOKOHAMA OFF-HIGHWAY): The second half of the year is still going to be robust and the effect of today’s supply chain disruptions will hit then, so dealers may struggle a bit more to get the truck tires they need. FUNKHOUSER (YOKOHAMA TIRE CORP.): With both OE and replacement demand being very strong, there will be a lot of pressure on tire manufacturers to keep up with supply. Once the backlog at the ports and the container issues are corrected, off-shore production should help relieve that pressure. With lower-than-normal store inventories, freight demand will continue to be strong and thus the demand for commercial truck tires will also be strong. MTD June 2021

6/1/21 9:30 AM


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