Non-tire rubber industry sales rebounded strongly
but labor and energy cost pressures increased
Recently, the 2024 Global non-tire rubber products "Top 50" list organized by the European Rubber Magazine (ERJ) was announced. The "Top 50" ranking of the non-tire rubber industry has changed greatly, and the American company Parker Hannifin has squeezed into the top three, ending the history of the "top three" all by European companies. China's Anhui Zhongding seal company squeezed into the "top ten", which is the first breakthrough in the non-tire rubber industry for Chinese enterprises. The world non-tire rubber industry has a strong rebound in sales, increased industry concentration, and improved profits, but it is facing pressure such as rising labor and energy costs, and the future is very uncertain.
Industry ranking dust settled
According to the convention, the 2024 global non-tire rubber products "Top 50" ranking is ranked by the company's sales of non-tire rubber products in 2023. No. 1 and No.2 remained unchanged, with Freudenberg maintaining its solid position at No. 1 with $7,729.1 billion, up 9.6%, and Continental at No.2 with $6.4 billion, up 3.0%. Parker Hannifin increased 20.2% to $5.3 billion, ranking third, ending the world's non-tire rubber industry for a long time by European companies occupied the "top three" history. Hutchinson, up 6.7%, ranked fourth with $4.627 billion, narrowly missing the "top three." After that, Sumitomo Technology advanced 3 positions from eighth to fifth, Gates Group retreated one to sixth, Trelleborg remained seventh unchanged, Cooper standard advanced 1 ranked eighth, NOK retreated 3 ranked ninth, and Anhui Zhongding seals advanced 3 ranked tenth. This is the first time that China's non-tire rubber enterprises have squeezed into the "top ten".
The largest regression is Malaysia's two glove latex production enterprises, of which the top gloves dropped from 24 to 48, Supermax due to poor demand for gloves, out of the top 50 ranking, becoming the only one to withdraw from the "top 50" enterprises this year. One of the new "Top 50" enterprises is Shidong Rubber, mainly engaged in rubber production and trade.
Among the "Top 50", the United States has 14, the most countries to enter the "top 50". Japan is second with 13. There are 16 companies in the EU region, including 4 in Germany, 2 in Sweden, 3 in France, 3 in Switzerland, 2 in Italy, 1 in Austria and 1 in Denmark. In addition, there are two in China, one in Malaysia, one in Australia, one in South Korea, one in the United Kingdom, and one in Thailand. In addition to the 10 seals in China, Zhuzhou Times New Material (600458) ranks 17th.
Industry sales rebounded strongly
In 2023, the sales of non-tire rubber industry as a whole rebounded significantly. In 2023, the total sales of the "top 50" non-tire rubber industry in the world was 86.842.1 billion US dollars, an increase of 3.6% over 2022. By region, Europe increased by 5.3% to $35.9 billion; North America grew 6.2% to $25.3 billion; Japan rose 3.5% to $16.317 billion. Of the 49 comparable digital companies in the Top 50, 29 reported positive growth, 19 declined, and one was flat. Of the "top 10", nine are positive and one is down. The major growth rates were: Sumitomo Polytechnic, Michelin and HS Research Corporation, which increased by 45.55%, 38.59% and 31.62% respectively. The biggest declines were in top gloves, Semperit and UCO Hooma rubber, with decreases of 61.06%, 57.12% and 17.69%, respectively. By product category, there was a large decline in epidemic-related protective products, such as top gloves and Semperit.
Among the top 50, the number of "$2 billion clubs" increased from 14 to 17, while the number of "$1 billion clubs" remained at 26. The sales revenue of the "top ten" was 42.849 billion US dollars, accounting for 49.34% of the total, up 2.07 percentage points compared with the previous year. Ranking the "top three" sales revenue of 19.467 billion US dollars, accounting for 22.41% of the total, down 1.22 percentage points relative to the previous year, and the concentration of the industry has increased.
Profits are improving but uncertain
Non-tire rubber industry profits generally improved. From the profit and profit margin announced in 2023, the majority of companies with profit growth and profit margin growth. Of the 42 companies with comparable profits, 36 increased and six declined.
However, there is still considerable uncertainty about global market trends. According to the survey, in the early months of 2024, the world's non-tire rubber giants faced pressure on sales and profits, mainly including global economic trends, rising labor and energy costs, and geopolitical tensions. Continental-owned ContiTech reported a "significant decline" in demand for its industrial and automotive businesses during the first quarter, particularly in Europe, where the company's carmaking business did not improve significantly in the first half of the year.
Still, in terms of the full-year outlook, Continental predicted that its business performance would improve, saying that "the first quarter will be the bottom of the year." Peter Nilsson, President of Trelleborg, said: "The performance of several segments of non-tyre rubber has been sluggish over the past few quarters".
In Trelleborg Industrial Solutions, the construction market remains under pressure and demand is weaker in certain industrial applications. Toyoda Gosei said the auto industry is supported by stable supply and strong demand, especially growth in electric vehicle sales in emerging markets, with sales up 12.5% in 2023 compared to the previous year. However, in its 2024 outlook, Toyoda Gosei said profit is expected to decline due to sales and market conditions. Datwyler said it is cautiously optimistic about the outlook for 2024, with revenue growth expected to be in the single-digit percentage range thanks to new projects in its healthcare and connector businesses.