Japan’s rubber belt exports for 2018 were largely unchanged year-on-year at a value of 39.62 billion yen ($356.06 million), according to foreign trade statistics released by the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and put together by the Japan Belting Manufacturers Association. Rubber belt exports to the U.S. – the Japanese sector’s top customer here – were up 11 percent year-on-year, while...
Industry
Sumitomo Rubber Works With German Research Institute to Clarify Processes Behind Natural Rubber Failure
Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd. (TYO:5110) has managed a world-first success in shedding light on the crystallization process that occurs at the tips of cracks in natural rubber – crystallization referring here to rubber molecules becoming aligned in the direction of elongation when the rubber is stretched. The company’s research on this was carried out in conjunction with the Leibniz Institute...
Japan’s Synthetic Rubber Production Falls 3% Year-on-Year for 2018
Japan’s production of synthetic rubber fell by 3.2 percent year-on-year to end at just under 1.57 million tons for 2018, according to figures recently released by the Synthetic Rubber Industry Association of Japan. In terms of individual rubber types, the country’s production of chloroprene rubber (CR) rose 1.8 percent year-on-year to reach 126,114 tons for 2018, while that for ethylene...
Special Report: Japanese Exports to China Rise for Some Rubber Products, Fall for Others
Driven by factors such as the U.S.–China trade war, China’s economic slowdown is becoming clearer as of late. And these trade tensions, as well as the related sense of deceleration in domestic Chinese conditions, are now having a visible impact on trade figures. Business conditions for electrical and electronic parts saw a negative trend through to the end of last...
Toyo Tires and Mitsubishi Launch Efforts to Draw Out Synergy
Toyo Tire Corp. (TYO:5105) and Mitsubishi Corp. (TYO:8058) have gotten started with efforts aimed at drawing out synergy between their two companies. This follows the pair having agreed to an increased capital partnership late last year. Looking to bring about synergy between their companies at an early stage, Toyo Tires and Mitsubishi have started up seven collaborative task forces relating...
Major Tire Companies Plan Production Increases for 2019 While Projecting Rising Sales, Falling Profits
Japan’s four major tire manufacturers have now posted their earnings forecasts for calendar 2019, with the general trend of expectations here pointing to increased sales and decreased profits. And amid this, all four of the companies are planning increases to their production capacity. While a number of factors make 2019 a difficult year to predict – including the U.S.–China trade...