Hankook Tire & Technology (Hankook Tire)'s institutional sector tire sales topped 10 trillion won for the first time last year.
Hankook Tire said on Feb. 4 that sales on a consolidation basis rose 125.3% from a year earlier to 21.2022 trillion won last year. Operating profit for the same period came to 1.8425 trillion won, up 4.6%. The change reflects the effect of Hanon Systems being included as a Hankook Tire subsidiary starting in the first quarter of last year.
By business, the tire institutional sector posted sales of 10.3186 trillion won last year, up 9.6% from a year earlier. This is the first time Hankook Tire's annual sales have exceeded 10 trillion won. However, operating profit fell 4.4% to 1.6843 trillion won. The factors included U.S. tariff and higher prices for natural rubber, a raw material.
Fourth-quarter sales last year were 2.7537 trillion won, the highest for any quarter, and operating profit was 485 billion won, up 2.5% from a year earlier.
The thermal management institutional sector Hanon Systems recorded sales of 10.8837 trillion won last year, up 8.9%, and operating profit of 271.8 billion won, up 184.5%. With fourth-quarter 2024 sales of 2.7025 trillion won and operating profit of 91.2 billion won, it has shown continued fundamental improvement since becoming a Hankook Tire subsidiary.
Hankook Tire is increasing the share of high-margin products in its sales. Among passenger car and light truck tire sales last year, high-inch tires of 18 inches and above accounted for 47.8%, and among original equipment tires for passenger cars and light trucks, electric vehicle tires accounted for 27%.
It is also expanding its customer base. Last year, it signed partnerships with Porsche, BMW, Xiaomi, Lucid Motors, Cupra and Kia. Hankook Tire currently supplies original equipment tires to more than 40 brands and more than 300 models.
Hankook Tire plans to focus on securing a competitive edge in the global market by steadily expanding its U.S. Tennessee plant and its plant in Hungary, Europe, this year. It also plans to further strengthen partnerships with premium brands, targeting a 51% share for high-inch tires and at least 33% for electric vehicle tires within original equipment tire sales for passenger cars and light trucks.