Hankook Tire Q2 operating profit up 54%

[THE INVESTOR] Hankook Tire posted a 54.3 percent increase in second-quarter operating profit on the back of strong sales of high-performance tires in its major markets, including the US and Europe.

South Korea’s largest tire-maker on Aug.17 reported the April-June operating profit of 310.2 billion won (US$279.4 million), compared with 201.0 billion won from the same period last year.

The sales stood at 1.72 trillion won, reflecting a 6.6 percent increase from a year earlier.

A Hankook Tire factory in Geumsan, South Chungcheong Province. Hankook Tire

“Based on continuous investment in research and design and strong technology, the percentage of ultrahigh-performance tires increased to 37.3 percent of total sales, up 2.6 percent on-year,” the company said in a statement. “The growth generated especially from the largest auto markets, such as the US and Europe.”

Following the impressive earnings report, Hankook Tire’s stock closed at 55,000 won on Aug. 18, up 6.8 percent from the previous day’s closing price.

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