Global wheel market to see robust 8.7 percent growth per year to 2022: Study

The wheel industry continues to evolve and has for many years seen aluminium substitute steel in many applications. This continues to be the case, but in recent years lighter materials have been gaining, though limited to certain niches on account of cost and other factors.

Smithers Rapra’s latest report, The Future of Passenger, Commercial and Speciality Vehicle Wheels to 2022 estimates the global wheel market at $81.7 billion in 2017, up from $64 billion in 2012 and anticipates a robust growth of 8.7 percent per year through to 2022, when the market will approach $124 billion.

One of these new materials, carbon fibre, has been growing rapidly in value terms, and will continue to do so. Magnesium, though not new, will also find increased favour in some niches, although also limited by cost. Even in currency terms, aluminium will continue to dominate, remaining well above 60 percent of the market. Steel’s decline will continue, and it is expected to be overtaken by carbon fibre, which is seen growing at nearly 30 percent per year.                                                

The highly diverse global wheel industry as defined in this report is very broad and touches on almost every area of economic activity where ground transportation of people and goods is a factor. The market is mainly accounted for by the light vehicle segment, which consists of cars and light trucks mainly for passenger but also some commercial use. Throughout the historical and forecast period, its share is around 72 percent.

APAC the dominant market by far
From the regional perspective, the distribution of the global market for wheels resembles trends that of vehicle production (and also OE tyre demand) to some extent. Asia-Pacific is by far the dominant market; however, value growth in all regions through 2022 is expected to accelerate from the 2012–17 pace. This is supported by generally growing or recovering regional economies, and steady increases in raw material input prices (primarily steel and aluminium).

Compared to the tyre market, wheels has a much more fragmented and balanced industry structure. Manufacturers are somewhat segmented according to materials used and end-use segment served. A few larger companies are broadly active, but many specialise in one or two materials or end uses.

The fast-emerging carbon fibre segment is an exception, and is so different that the companies are for now entirely separate and specialised. The companies producing passenger, commercial and speciality wheels are very diverse in terms of the mix of end uses, materials and regions served. Most companies are small, privately owned, and specialised, but several are large public companies operating in two or more end uses, and typically all regions. Even many of the smaller companies are global in reach. But very few are active across all the wheel types. Some of these have been growing by acquisition, a trend which should continue.