The U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA) has made big revisions to its outlook on tire shipments for 2019. Most notable is a projection that replacement passenger tire shipments will increase by 5.8 million units for the year.
Two reasons why that figure is notable:
- In March, when the USTMA released its initial projections for 2019, the association predicted replacement passenger tire units would decrease by 600,000 for the year. That means in five months time, there's been a turnaround of 6.4 million tires.
- The 2019 figures are compared to 2018, a year of historically strong shipments.
The swing in the replacement market changes the overall picture for the tire industry. In March the USTMA said total shipments — replacement and original equipment — would be down 2.4 million tires. In the new forecast, total shipments are expected to increase by 2.4 million.
| 2018 | 2019 Forecast | % Change | Units | |
| Original Equipment | ||||
| Passenger | 47.1 | 45.2 | -3.9% | -1.9 |
| Light truck | 5.6 | 6.0 | 6.3% | 0.4 |
| Truck | 6.5 | 6.7 | 3.7% | 0.2 |
| Replacement | ||||
| Passenger | 217.8 | 223.6 | 2.6% | 5.8 |
| Light truck | 31.7 | 32.0 | 1.0% | 0.3 |
| Truck | 21.8 | 19.4 | -11.0% | -2.4 |
| Total shipments | 330.4 | 332.9 | 0.7% | 2.4 |
All shipments are in millions. Figures are rounded.
Note: The March figures included preliminary 2018 data. At the time, the USTMA said the government shutdown delayed the release of December trade data. The chart above reflects minor changes — all in the replacement tire category. Each of those figures increased slightly, making the total grow from 329.4 million to 330.4 million shipments.
For more information, visit www.ustires.org.
