Hankook announced sales of KRW 2,340.0 billion (approx. EUR 1,638.4m) and an operating profit of KRW 396.3 billion (approx. EUR 277.4m) based on global consolidated financial results for the third quarter of 2023. Sales and operating profit increased by 1.8 percent and 106 percent respectively year-on-year (YoY).
Hankook Maintains Strong Performance Amid Challenging Business Landscape
In the third quarter, Hyunbum Cho, Chairman & CEO of Hankook & Company, focused on pre-emptive investments to supply new tyres for electric vehicles (EV) and original equipment (OE) tyres for supercar brands, with the aim of dominating the future mobility industry. In particular, the company saw notable results in the research & development (R&D) undertaken to meet the tyre performance requirements for supercars and high-performance electric vehicles of global premium automobile brands.
In addition, Hankook has been continuously expanding its sales regions and product line-ups after the global launch of the world’s first full-line EV tyre brand ‘iON’ in May 2022. Simultaneously, it also managed to actively engage as the exclusive supplier and official partner of the world’s best EV racing competition ‘ABB FIA Formula E World Championship’. This is because, leading the global EV tyre market, Hankook has successfully proven its long-established technology in electric vehicles, even prior to widespread commercialisation.
Hankook is firmly establishing its position as a leading global tyre company with approximately 250 original equipment supply lines to around 40 global automobile brands, including Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and Tesla. This underscores its status as a top-tier premium tyre brand in the global market.
Furthermore, the company has maintained strong performance amid a challenging business landscape. This is attributed to factors such as stabilised prices of raw materials, including synthetic rubber and carbon black, as well as the reduction in maritime freight costs. Its strategic pricing and effective management of state-of-the-art products, including high-inch, high-performance and electric vehicle tyres, have been instrumental in creating synergistic effects leading to commendable results.
These effects have extended into Q3, with tyres designed for passenger cars and light trucks (PCLT) with a size of 18 inches or larger accounting for 43.4 per cent of total sales. This represents a growth rate of 2.3 percentage points (pp) YoY. Among the major regions, China had the highest proportion of sales for high-inch passenger car tyres at 57.3 per cent, followed by Korea at 53.6 per cent, North America at 51.4 percent and Europe at 34.3 per cent.
