Nexen Tire posted third quarter revenue of $606.2 million and $13.5 million in operating profit.

This marks a 4.4% year-over-year revenue increase and Nexen's fourth consecutive quarter above $595.2 million.

"Third quarter growth was driven by higher sales of high-value-added products and strong sales in Europe," say Nexen officials. "Revenue in Europe reached $259.7 million USD, up 8.8% year-on-year, making it the company’s largest market at 43% of total revenue, followed by North America at 21%, Korea at 18% and other regions at 18%."

Nexen officials say the tiremaker "continued to improve its product mix, centered on high-value-added products such as high-inch, all-weather and winter tires. The sales mix of 18-inch and above tires rose to 41.5%, up 3.4 percentage points year-on-year and 2.7 percentage points quarter-on-quarter. The high-inch share climbed 7.3 percentage points year-on-year to 32.2% in Europe and reached 51.1% in the US.

"All-weather ... and winter tires maintained their growth momentum on the back of new regional product launches. For the first nine months of the year, revenue rose 31.3% year-on-year for all-weather tires and 11.7% for winter tires. This growth reflects the introduction of the Winguard Sport 3 winter tire in Europe and the launch of the N’BLUE 4Season 2 all-weather tire in markets such as Korea and the U.S."

According to Nexen officials, the company's original equipment (OE) business "has remained strong. Despite slowing growth in the OE market amid weak global demand for new vehicles, as well as exchange rate volatility and shifting trade conditions in major economies, the company has continued to win new OE supply from global automakers, including premium brands."

Meanwhile, cost pressures and other factors weighed on Nexen's profitability during the third quarter.

"Raw material prices and ocean freight rates are up due to external factors such as the conflict in the Middle East, pushing the cost-of-sales ratio up to 74.0%, a 2.6% increase from the same period last year. Once costs for raw materials and ocean freight stabilize, Nexen Tire expects its improved product mix to become a key driver of profitability."