South Korea’s Hankook Tire & Technology plans to produce truck and bus radial tires in its Tennessee factory later this year. Photo courtesy of Hankook Tire & Technology
South Korea’s leading tire maker, Hankook Tire & Technology, plans to expand production lines in its U.S. factory to roll out truck and bus radial tires, or TBR, later this year.
Hankook Tire said Tuesday that it strives to increase its TBR tire production to 1 million by the end of 2026 at the Tennessee factory. The firm also aims to double the annual capacity for passenger car and light truck, or PCLT, tires to 11 million.
This marks the first time Hankook Tire will churn out TBR tires in the United States. Established in 2017, the Tennessee plant has focused on PCLT tires.
The company decided to manufacture TBR tires there because of planned 25% tariffs that could be imposed Aug. 1 by the Trump administration on products imported from South Korea.
As of last year, the biggest market for TBR tires made in Hankook Tire’s East Asian factories was North America with 38%, followed by Europe with 29%, Korea with 19% and China with 6%.
Observers point out that Hankook Tire’s move makes sense in consideration of the fast-growing TBR tire market.
“People care more about PCLT tires. But for tire makers, TBR tires are more lucrative and contribute more to sales. Hence, Hankook Tire’s decision to install TBR tire lines in the U.S. draws attention,” Daelim University automotive professor Kim Pil-soo told UPI.
“You should win out in the U.S. automotive market to become a genuine global powerhouse. The high tariff of Washington also must have affected its policy of raising production in its Tennessee factory,” he said.
New York-based business tracker Zion Market Research projected that the global TBR tire market would go rise to $34.47 billion in 2034 from $17.79 billion last year.
