What hasn’t grown in recent years? This is a question we could ask ourselves on all levels, especially when it comes to cars. In addition, at Auto Plus we talk to you quite regularly about the explosion of car prices in recent years and everything that revolves around it.
Today, unsurprisingly, it’s the key element of the car that has suffered from inflation: the tire. As figures published by the tire trade union in its 2023 report on the French market showed, prices exploded.
Asian tires are progressing
In 2023 in France the tire market fell by 4.5% compared to 2022. Only the number of tires for off-road vehicles, which make up 9% of the total number (+4%), is increasing. The number of passenger car tires (82% of the total) decreased by 4.4% compared to 2022. Most worrying, at least for “traditional” producers, this is an unprecedented increase in sales of imported tires produced outside the EU, and mainly Asian.
Last year, sales of tires from “premium” brands such as Michelin, Bridgestone, Continental, Goodyear and Pirelli fell by 5.6%. On the other hand, imported “budget” brands grew by 6.4%. Premium tire manufacturers justify these cuts by repeated crises (social, medical, energy, raw materials) that lead to a gradual increase in production and distribution costs. which have a priority effect on the sales prices of tires produced in France or in the European Unionbut much more moderate on the transport costs of imported tires.
Constant promotion
And what does that mean in terms of price? Not surprisingly, they exploded as passenger car tire prices continued to rise in 2023 by +4.9% compared to 2022. This growth follows growth of 13.8% in 2022 and 8.9% in 2021. This is 34% more expensive than in 2016. And contrary to what you might think, online tire retailers have been hit harder by inflation than their brick-and-mortar competitors.
Volumes fell 8.7% year-on-year, compared with 1.8% at physical points of sale, the tire union said.
Read also:
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Source: Auto Plus
Robert is an experienced journalist who has been covering the automobile industry for over a decade. He has a deep understanding of the latest technologies and trends in the industry and is known for his thorough and in-depth reporting.