Bridgestone is investing over Bt15 billion for a new tyre plant at the Amata Nakorn Industrial Estate in Chon Buri province of Thailand. The company will make Thailand the company’s car tyre hub for the ASEAN market, media reported.

Thai Deputy Agriculture Minister Yuttapong Charasathien had held meetings with Bridgestone management in Japan. He told media that the tyre maker was happy with the quality of Thailand rubber and hence would make it the base for making car tyres. Bridgestone has four tyre plants in Thailand, which use an average of 100,000 tonnes a year.

Continental AG has reported sales fall by around 3.4% in Q1 of 2013 compared to the corresponding period in 2012. CEO Dr. Elmar Degenhart said that “as anticipated, the first three months of this year were difficult. However, our business has already regained momentum. We're confident that global production of passenger cars will continue to stabilise. We also expect the tyre replacement markets in Europe to pick up following the unusually long period of cold weather.” 

With criticism mounting against its Formula 1 tyres, Pirelli, the official tyre supplier, has announced that new hard tyres will be used in the Spanish GP on May 12. The Italian tyre maker said the P Zero Orange will change to a different compound.

In one of the biggest private equity investments in India in recent months, KKR & Co LP, New York-based equity form, has agreed to buy Alliance Tire Group (ATG) for about $650 million from Warburg Pincus LLC, media reports said. ATG manufactures a wide range of off-highway tyres, primarily for the agricultural, construction and earth-moving sectors.

MRF Tyres remains the most popular tyre in India among original equipment owners, says a report published by J D Power Asia Pacific. It ranked the highest in customer satisfaction for the fourth consecutive year, receiving a score of 840 points. J K Tyres followed with 839 points while Bridgestone came third, according to the report. The study also found that customers facing tyre problems