Hankook Tire (http://www.hankooktire.com), the seventh-largest and one of the fastest growing tire companies in the world, announced today its consolidated earnings results for the fiscal year 2009, with global sales of KRW 4.8 trillion and an operating profit of KRW 549.3 billion, a remarkable accomplishment of unprecedented earnings
With a growing brand value supported by its global reputation for high quality products and services, Hankook Tire has gained market momentum and continued to see robust performance in 2009. On a consolidated basis, Hankook Tire’s global sales hit a record high KRW 4.8 trillion, an 18% year-over-year increase. The operating profit for 2009 was nearly five times greater than the profit in 2008, KRW 114.2 billion. The growth rates mark incomparable figures in last year’s global tire industry.
Further strengthening its position as a leading global company, Hankook Tire kept intense focus on enhancing global marketing strategies including diversification of markets and increasing effectiveness of the SCM(Supply Chain Management) system.
Another key driver of Hankook Tire’s successful business last year was the establishment of solid footholds in diverse regions, embracing the economic downturn as an opportunity to capture market share and actively responding to customer demand. Maintaining its position as a market leader in China, Hankook Tire saw a 54% increase in local sales to car makers due to the drastic expansion of the Chinese automobile market. In addition, Hankook Tire’s strong presence in the Korean replacement market resulted in substantial growth. Also, total sales for the Middle East increased by 25%, through the company’s emphasis on driving further expansion in emerging markets. Hankook Tire’s Made-in-Europe products, having stable production and improved productivity, appealed to the European customers. Hankook Tire saw a significant growth in 2009 generated from global car makers, becoming one of their favorite tire companies based on growing trust in its quality products.
Another accomplishment that led to growth was the positive results in Ultra High Performance (UHP) Tires, proving that Hankook Tire’s superior quality and service were being acknowledged by more global customers noted in tire tests by leading publications. The overall global sales of UHP marked a 9.6% year-over-year increase. In particular, Hankook Tire’s UHP supplies to global carmakers showed remarkable growth in the global market and in China with 129% and 46% year-over-year increases respectively.
Having a positive outlook for 2010, Hankook Tire is aggressively targeting for global sales of KRW 5.1 trillion for the first time this year. Also, Hankook Tire aims to position itself as a caring company committed to eco-friendly products and technology as well as customer safety through ongoing R&D investment.
Mr. Seung Hwa Suh, Vice Chairman & CEO of Hankook Tire stated, “We are proud of our astounding achievements in 2009 which was based on our market diversification strategies and our priority on attaining premium quality.” Mr. Suh added, “In 2010, we set another aggressive sales target at KRW 5.1 trillion and will continue to prove that we are making sustainable growth worldwide. We also aim to expand the global customers’ trust through ongoing efforts for customer safety and the environment as a leading global company.”
Setting out and meeting the growth targets every year, Hankook Tire will continue to search for new grounds in the market with new initiatives and next generation roadmaps.
Source: http://global.hankooktire.com/compmed/News_View.aspx?pageNum=4&subNum=4&ChildNum=2&Seq=517&PageNo=1&KeyValue=0&KeyWord
