Goodyear has reported second-quarter net income down 37% to US$147m, with operating income of US$361m.
“Our second quarter results reflect the impact of volatile raw material costs and an increasingly challenging competitive environment, particularly in the US and Europe,” said Goodyear chairman and CEO, Richard Kramer.
“In addition to higher raw material costs, we have seen a weakening in OE and consumer replacement demand across many of our key markets during the first half, despite strong underlying industry fundamentals.”
“The combination of these factors has led to a highly unusual first half environment, particularly given the favourable trends in miles driven, gasoline prices and unemployment that are generally supportive of our industry.
“In light of the challenging global marketplace in the first half of 2017, we have lowered our segment operating income expectations for the remainder of the year. Despite the near-term challenges, I am no less optimistic about our ability to drive our strategic priorities against the favourable industry megatrends.”
Goodyear’s second quarter 2017 sales were US$3.7bn, down from US$3.9bn a year ago, with the decrease largely attributable to lower tyre unit volume, partially offset by improved price/mix.
Tyre unit volumes totalled 37.4m, down 10% from 2016, primarily in Europe, Middle East and Africa and the Americas. Replacement tyre shipments were down 11%. Original equipment unit volume fell 8%.
Goodyear’s sales for the first six months of 2017 were US$7.4bn, down 2%, reflecting lower tyre unit volume, partially offset by improved price/mix.
