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LATIN AMERICA EXPO
Shih Fa Starts Focusing on Latin America
Mauricio Solano Barcelanas, ITRS manager for Latin America
Chinese rubber products supplier Shih Fa was among the companies exhibiting during the Latin Tyre Expo 2019. According to Eric Tsai, spokesperson for the company, Shih Fa is looking for some new partners in the region.
“This is our second time of participation in this show and this is also our second year of
the local market.
“I believe that the volume of trade is reducing due to cheap radial tyres from China. It is not only in this area, but also on the Asian markets. The demand has been seen shrinking,” Tsai added. “It is possible to find some Chinese manufacturers at this show that brought their low-profile tyres.
promoting our products on the local markets. We have already found some customers here, through this show,” said Tsai. “It is not only about the Panama market, it is also about the neighbouring markets, like, for example, Colombia, Peru and so on”. “During the 2019 show we have already got a customer from one of those countries. This year some companies that were visitors of our booth last year became our customers,” Tsai said.
Although, Shih Fa is targeting some developments in Latin America, the company has recognised the downward trends in
They are lighter and thinner. So, they managed to cut their price by more than 50%, and people everywhere are willing to buy their tyres, instead of retreading”. According to Tsai, despite the efforts of retreaders to become more competitive, the new Chinese tyres, that are even cheaper than those manufactured in the past, face strong problems these days. On the other hand, Tsai said, some positive changes have already been seen, and Shih Fa expects the demand for rubber products on the Latin American retreading market to grow in the coming years.
“I’m based in Costa Rica, and we have clients all over the region. I believe it is very easy to appoint meetings at this show, instead of going to many different places. We have customers in different countries of the region so it would be a bit inconvenient. And, of course, for our customers it is not convenient to go to Canada,” he said.
Every year the show brings different results. In 2019, it is expected to be not as great in some of the previous years, but nevertheless good enough to justify the participation.
“The demand is a bit lower than in some of the previous years of the show, but we remain optimistic. After all, there are no technologies like those that we are offering, so people keep coming to us, looking for opportunities to repair their tyres, as well as some cost-saving solutions, also basically everything is good,” Barcelanas said.
It is believed that the Latin American tyre market is going to
grow in the coming years. Barcelanas said that ITRS is present “at every level of the market” in terms of sizes, types of tyres and so on, and so the anticipated growth promises to secure some new opportunities for the company.
“We are supplying tyre repair materials for everything from car tyres to mining tyres, which are the biggest tyres in the world. Actually, we are even more focused on these tyres. We notice that the mining sector in Latin America has been growing a lot in the previous years, and it keeps growing, including with some new projects launched in Panama, Colombia, Peru, Chile and some other countries,” Barcelas said, adding that ITRS got some new contracts from these countries thanks to the expansion of the local mining industry.
This is a very promising niche and ITRS expects that the demand from this segment will be on the rise in Latin America.
Galgo Remains Optimistic about Market Prospects
ITRS Promotes Tyre Repair Products in Latin America
Mexican tread manufacturer Galgo brought some new products to exhibit during the Latin Tyre Expo 2019 and expected the event to be quite fruitful.
“Just like at the other similar shows, we try to offer our newest products. This is exactly what most companies do, and we do the same. Our new products have certain advantages. Some of them we are just trying, some of them we have already tried. Our treads have proved to be very popular, and the customers here are looking for them,” Francisco Ibarzabal, director of the company, said.
“We are offering here products mainly for the Latin American market, which is kind of different.
For example, in Europe the products have to be wider and thicker in order to be in demand. So, this means that we used to exhibit different products here and, for example, in the show in Cologne. So, we brought 14 different treads to the Latin Tyre Expo, those that are the most popular in the region,” Ibarzabal said.
In addition, there are some segments rather unique for the local markets. For example, there is a demand for OTR retreaded tyres for the big 16 tonne trucks for hauling containers of harvested sugar cane. So, this means that Galgo supplies a broad range of treads for different applications and tries to be flexible to meet consumer needs.
Canadian tyre repair products supplier ITRS brought some new ranges of products to the Latin Tyre Expo 2019, seeking to take advantage of the growing number of ecological initiatives in the region.
According to Mauricio Solano Barcelanas, the company’s manager for Latin America, ITRS provide tyre repair materials that could be used to turn scrap into a marketable product. This is good
both for the environment and for business, which is why it is in high demand nowadays, including in Latin America.
“We have been participating in this show from the very beginning, and we believe it is a good place to develop business. There are different customers, suppliers and other people involved in the tyre business. So, it is really good opportunity for us,” Barcelanas said.
44 Retreading Business