Since mid-April, the tire industry has experienced a wave of intensive price increases.
According to relevant reports, more than 70 tire companies have issued “price increase letters”, covering various categories such as all-steel tires, semi-steel tires, inner tubes, and OTRs. The increases are generally concentrated between 2% and 5%.
This is not the first price increase for tires. Since 2025, tire prices have formed multiple rounds of concentrated increases at multiple points in time, including March, August to September, and November.
The direct driver of this round of price increases is the sharp increase in raw material costs.
In tire production costs, raw materials account for as high as 70% to 80%, among which the prices of major raw materials such as natural rubber, synthetic rubber, carbon black and auxiliaries, and steel cords have collectively increased.
According to analysts at Longzhong Information, on the one hand, the main natural rubber producing areas in Southeast Asia have entered the traditional cut-off period, and tight supply has pushed rubber prices higher month-on-month; on the other hand, geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East have pushed up international oil prices, driving prices of synthetic rubber, carbon black, etc. to rise sharply, and some auxiliary materials have even increased by more than 20%.
Data show that the average production cost of all-steel tires in March exceeded 970 yuan/unit, an increase of nearly 7% from January.
International carbon black giant Cabot China has raised the price of all special carbon black products produced in China by 1,800 yuan/ton since March 15. This is its second price increase this year.
Natural rubber prices have continued to rise since 2023, hitting a nearly seven-year high in early 2025.
The superposition of multiple raw material price increases has put tire companies in a “cost inversion” dilemma, and price increases have become a passive choice.
Judging from the price increase letters, many companies mentioned “rising manufacturing costs” when explaining their reasons.
Shuangqian Tire Group stated in the notice that the 2% price increase this time is far from being able to absorb the cost increase, and subsequent adjustments will be made based on changes in raw material prices.
This also means that if raw material prices continue to rise, the possibility of further increases in tire prices cannot be ruled out.
This round of price increases is not the behavior of individual companies, but a price adjustment for the whole industry and all categories.
The brands involved include not only international giants such as Michelin, Continental, Bridgestone, Pirelli, and Goodyear, but also domestic leading enterprises such as Zhongce Rubber (Chaoyang), Zhengxin Rubber (Maxxis), Linglong Tire, Sailun, Double Star Tire, and many small and medium-sized tire manufacturers.
In addition to direct price increases, some companies also deal with raw material price fluctuations through futures hedging.
On March 13, Zhongce Rubber announced that it plans to carry out futures hedging business for natural rubber, synthetic rubber and other related varieties. It is expected that the upper limit of margin and royalties will not exceed 600 million yuan to stabilize profitability and improve risk prevention capabilities.
It is worth noting that the increase in tire prices is only a microcosm of the cost pressure in the automotive industry chain.
Since the second half of 2025, the prices of lithium carbonate, the core raw material for batteries, and automotive-grade memory chips have also been rising, with some memory chips increasing nearly three times.
The price of lithium carbonate has rebounded from last year’s low of about 75,000 yuan/ton to the current level of about 160,000 yuan/ton, an increase of more than 100%.
Lu Fang, chairman of Lantu Automobile, said recently that if upstream prices continue to rise, pressure will eventually be transmitted to the end market, driving up vehicle prices.
The “price war” for new energy vehicles that has lasted for nearly two years may take a significant turn in this round of price increases.
