Import of truck and bus tyres has seen a sharp rise since May, despite the government imposing restrictions on these in November last year, which had helped pull down the demand.
According to the Delhi-based Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association (Atma), imports of truck and bus tyres were 138,347 units in August from 20,222 units recorded in April, a six-fold rise.
The import of cheap Chinese tyres have led the rally. The import from China was 100,772 tyres during August as compared to 9,594 tyres imported in April. The rally has come on the back of one of world’s largest automotive markets, the US, recently imposing high tariffs on free import of Chinese tyres.
| IMPORT TRENDS | ||
| Truck and bus tyres | From China | Total |
| October, 2008 | 48,335 | 68,218 |
| November, 2008 | 39,806 | 50,270 |
| December, 2008 | 33,292 | 38,999 |
| January, 2009 | 17,546 | 23,786 |
| February, 2009 | 11,017 | 26,880 |
| March, 2009 | 9,004 | 25,560 |
| April, 2009 | 9,594 | 20,222 |
| May, 2009 | 34,610 | 58,540 |
| June, 2009 | 66,663 | 96,447 |
| July, 2009 | 81,477 | 114,297 |
| August, 2009 | 100,772 | 138,347 |
| (Source: Atma) | ||
In November 2008, the government had put the import of radial truck and bus tyres on the ‘restricted list’, allowing these to be imported only by actual users. Accordingly, the import of truck and bus tyres fell from 68,218 tyres in October 2008 to 38,999 tyres in December 2008, a decline of almost 43 per cent. From January-April, 2009 they averaged around 22,000 tyres per month.
The main reason behind the recent surge in imports is because of an increase in licence issuance by the government. This time, however, licences are issued not only to actual users but for stock and sales, too. Said Rajiv Budhraja, Atma’s Director General: “The reprieve to the industry from no-holds-barred import of tyres, primarily from China, proved to be short-lived. Over the past few months, government has stepped up the process of issuing the licences. While earlier only actual users were allowed to import, now licenses are being issued for stock and sale also.”
“Since April, the imports have been rising in alarming proportions and have once again crossed the figure of 100,000 tyres in August,” he complained.
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Experts say with the imposition of such high tariffs by the US, it is evident that China will be looking for alternatives and India, with its growth prospects, offers a lucrative market.
“We need to have effective checks in place, otherwise the imports will seriously impair growth at a time when Indian industry has been able to ride a difficult downturn,” added Budhraja.
The increase in imports of tyres into India comes at a time when sales of medium and heavy trucks and buses have gathered steam after a gap of more than six months. Government-led efforts to revive demand for heavy commercial vehicles (goods carriers) has translated into an increase of 2.5 per cent in September, after the segment witnessed a free fall of 77 per cent in December.
Last year, India was crowned the third-largest importer of cheap Chinese tyres, when exports from the dragon country climbed multi-fold. Only about seven years earlier, India ranked 39th on the list of importers of Chinese tyres.