Tyre demand in the country is expected to grow 20 per cent this fiscal (FY 11) as against 18 per cent in the year-ago period on the back of a strong demand for vehicles across all segments, an industry official said.
India had produced 971.36 lakh tyres in 2009-10 as against 821.07 lakh tyres in 2008-09.
"Tyre demand in India will continue...It will see a double-digit growth this year on the back of a strong demand for vehicles across all segments. Tyre demand is expected to grow 20 per cent," Automotive Tyre Manufacturers' Association Director-General, Rajiv Budhraja, told PTI here.
Tyre demand for trucks and buses is expected to increase 12-15 per cent while that of passenger cars by 18-20 per cent, Budhraja said.
Light Commercial Vehicles (LCV) tyre demand is expected to grow 8-10 per cent while demand for tractor tyres would go up 22-25 per cent, he said.
Tyre demand for motor-cycles are also set to increase by 20-22 per cent this year as against 18 per cent last year.
"Two-wheeler demand is growing in both urban and rural India. The country's rural parts will play a vital role in terms of increasing volumes of vehicles as well as tyres," he said.
According to Budhraja, about Rs 12,000 crore of investments are in the pipeline to expand production capacity by about 25 per cent from the current 97 million tyres a year.
"Global tyre companies are now more interested to invest in India as many auto majors are setting up manufacturing units in the country. The new plants would start operations over the next 12-18 months," he said.
On exports, Budhraja said, "Exports will probably be steady as demand from western countries slows."
Tyre majors such as MRF, Apollo, JK Tyres, Bridgestone and Ceat have already drawn-up ambitious plans in the country as the automobile industry is growing rapidly in India.