South Korean tire manufacturers have nearly reached sales of 45 million units in the global market during the first half of this year, the Korea Tire Manufacturers Association said on Sunday.
Domestic companies, including Hankook Tire & Technology, Kumho Tire Co., and Nexen Tire Corp., sold 44.52 million tires in the first half, a 3.3% increase from 43.12 million units in the same period last year.
This marks the highest sales figure since 49.10 million units were sold in the first half of 2019.
Tire exports rose by 4.9% to 33.83 million units, compared to 32.26 million units in the same period last year.
Sales of replacement tires in the domestic market also grew by 4.8%, reaching approximately 8.49 million units.
However, sales of original equipment (OE) tires for new vehicles fell by 20.3% to 2.19 million units, reflecting a decline in demand for new cars.
The increase in tire exports was driven by strong demand in the European market.
The export value of automotive tires in the first half reached $1.83 billion (2.52 trillion won), up 2.9% from the previous year.
Exports to Europe accounted for $884 million (1.22 trillion won), making up 48.2% of total exports, a nearly 10 percentage point rise from 38.5% in the first half of last year.
By Jin-Won Kim
jin1@hankyung.com
