Goodyear global fourth-quarter sales decline year on year

Tyre unit volumes totalled 41.1 million, down 2 per cent from 2015. Replacement tyre shipments were down 1 per cent. Original-equipment unit volume was down 7 per cent, driven in part by weakness in the US commercial-truck market.
Meanwhile, full-year 2016 sales were $15.2 billion, down 8 per cent from 2015, primarily reflecting the deconsolidation of Venezuela and unfavourable foreign-currency translation.
Tyre unit volumes totalled 166.1 million, in essence unchanged from 2015. Replacement tyre shipments were up 2 per cent. Original-equipment unit volume was down 4 per cent. Excluding the impact of the deconsolidation of Venezuela, unit volumes increased 1 per cent.
Goodyear’s net income at the end of 2016 of $1.3 billion ($4.74 per share) was up from $307 million ($1.12 per share) in 2015. The increase was driven by a charge in 2015 to deconsolidate Venezuela and a decrease in 2016 income-tax expense due to the release of foreign tax valuation allowances. Full-year adjusted net income was $1.1 billion ($4.00 per share), up from $906 million ($3.32 per share) in 2015. Per-share amounts are diluted.
“We delivered solid net income and record core segment operating income in 2016, driven by strong performance in our Americas and Asia-Pacific consumer tyre businesses,” said chairman Rich Kramer. “Our results demonstrate continued sustainable earnings growth and disciplined execution of our strategy.
“While we expect raw-material inflation to be a significant headwind in 2017, the combination of Goodyear’s innovation leadership, award-winning products and strong global brand creates an industry-leading value proposition and competitive advantage. We’ve demonstrated that we have been able to successfully offset raw-material inflation over time.
“We remain confident in our strategy of capturing profitable growth in key segments of the market and in delivering our 2020 targets,” he said.