JK Tyre & Industries has been mitigated the impact of US tariffs on tyre imports by bolstering its push to Europe and South American markets, while also catering to heightened demand at home following the reduction in goods and services tax (GST).
“US exposure to our total turnover is only 3%. We have diverted our exports to other markets, which are now having a higher share of our exports. Within Mexico, Brazil and Latin America, we have increased exports,” Anshuman Singhania, MD, JK Tyre, said.
The Trump administration hiked tariffs on imports from India by 50% a few months ago to encourage companies to set up plants in the US. JK Tyre exports radials to the US from its plant in Mexico which has also been slapped with a steep tariff.
“For the new markets, we are developing a whole range of products for West Asia, Europe, Latin America and Brazil. We are one of the largest exporters for truck radials to Europe and we will be reinforcing our offerings there,” Singhania said.
At home, the GST cut has boosted tyre demand. JK Tyre is preparing to add new capacities for both passenger car and truck and bus as existing capacities are operating at around 90%. Targeted at larger sized and more premium tyres, these new capacities will come up in the next nine months.
“The new capacity coming up is dedicated to the premium segment and higher rim size. SUVs now are 65% of the market and the rim size there is larger than other segments. We are growing our mix to higher rim sizes. We are also putting up capacities to cater and make ourself more capable to participate in the market,” Singhania added.
JK Tyre has lined up a capital expenditure of Rs 1,400 crore for FY26 and FY27 for setting up new tyre plants. “We don’t see an immediate need for capacity but we are assessing the market very closely and soon we will decide on that,” he said.
JK Tyre reported a 62% year-on-year growth in consolidated net profit during the September quarter, helped by better mix, favourable raw material costs and higher revenues. The Delhi-based company clocked a net profit of Rs 227 crore, while consolidated revenue from operations grew by 11% to Rs 4,011 crore.
It reported a 13% increase in export volumes over the previous quarter despite the prevailing uncertainty around the US tariffs.