Kenda Targets NT$50 B. (US$1.67 B.) in Revenues by 2016

Taipei, Oct.8, 2012 (CENS)--Y.M. Yang, chairman of Kenda Tires Co. in Taiwan, announced at the company's 50th anniversary to generate revenues of NT$50 billion (US$1.67 billion) by 2016, pushing the maker from 27th to top-20 globally as ranked by Tire Business, an information provider of global tire markets.

Yang says due to half shareholdings of Kenda Cooper (Kunshan, Jiangsu Province), a joint venture between Kenda and Cooper Tyre & Rubber Co., being sold last year, Kenda's ranking in 2012 (based on revenues in 2011) dropped a spot to 27th without revenues from Kenda Cooper.

With plant expansions in China and Taiwan, Yang is confident the maker will challenge revenues of NT$50 billion (US$1.67 billion) by 2016. Currently the maker generates from passenger vehicle tires 25% of revenues, and as much as 50% by 2016 to push Kenda into the top 20 internationally.

Q.R. Yang, vice chairman of Kenda, says as raw materials in the second half stays low, operations in the second half will remain stable, with steady gross profit margin to help improve operations from last year.

For capacity expansion of passenger vehicle tires, Kenda will increase its Yuanlin plant's daily capacity from 4,000 tires to 8,000 by mid-2013. Yang says the newly-built plant in Tianjin, mainly for passenger vehicle tires, will be completed in July 2013 with 10,000 tires daily capacity initially, increasing to 50,000 as goal.

Kenda's plant in Kunshan will also improve daily capacity from 18,000 tires to 22,500. An institutional investor estimates the firm's newly-added capacity next year will contribute about NT$1.8 billion (US$60 million) in consolidated revenues.