Tire shipment results were mixed for Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. outside the United States and Canada in May.
1. Latin America. Goodyear's tire unit sales were down from last year primarily due to a timing reduction in export shipments.
At OE, tire unit sales were up from last year "due to increased commercial volume in Mexico and Brazil."
Goodyear says mix improvements, lower raw material costs and productivity gains in Latin America all contributed to an operating income performance above May 2001 (currencies devalued 19% in Argentina and 6% in Brazil in May).
2. Europe. Goodyear's replacement and OE consumer and commercial tire shipments in Europe suffered compared to the same period last year.
Overall European replacement consumer and commercial tire shipments were down 6% and 2%, respectively. Both Goodyear's consumer and commercial shipments were below industry shipment levels.
Goodyear says its operating income in Europe in May was negatively impacted by lower volume. "However, this was more than offset by lower raw material costs," added the company.
3. Eastern Europe. There was good news in eastern Europe, where Goodyear's replacement tire unit sales were up significantly from 2001, primarily due to overall market recovery in South Africa, Slovenia and Turkey.
The company's OE tire unit sales were below last year "due to continued softness in the Polish automotive industry."
4. Asia. May's replacement and OE tire unit sales in Asia were below last year's levels. However, higher capacity utilization and lower raw material costs helped Goodyear increase its operating income compared to last year.
