[THE INVESTOR] Hankook Tire recorded the highest operating margin in the tire industry in the first half of the year, beating out its bigger European and Japanese rivals, industry data showed Aug. 22.

Hankook Tire, the world’s seventh largest tire-maker in terms of revenue, posted sales of 3.35 trillion won (US$2.98 billion) from January to June. Its operating profit came to 561.3 billion won to deliver an operating margin of 16.7 percent. 
Japan’s Bridgestone, the world’s largest tire and rubber company, posted an operating margin of 13.3 percent in the cited period, based on 1.64 trillion yen (US$16.28 billion) in sales and operating profit of 218.2 billion yen.

Meanwhile, other top-tier companies Michelin, Goodyear and Sumimoto Rubber Industries fell behind Hankook Tire in terms of operating margin, with 13.7 percent, 12.5 percent and 8.2 percent, respectively.

According to the company, Hankook Tire’s operating margin peaked on the back of strong sales of high-performance tires in its major markets, including the US and Europe.

By Ahn Sung-mi (sahn@heraldcorp.com)