Following the publication of an interview with representatives of China’s Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber tire manufacturing business, Cooper Tire & Rubber Europe has expressed "surprise" at one particular reported detail.
In an e-mail to Tyres & Accessories, the company’s marketing and communications manager, Sarah McRoberts, contested any suggestion that Hangzhou Zhongce "was claiming to make tires for Cooper."
Toward the end of the article, it was plainly suggested Hangzhou’s “off-take portfolio includes contracts producing tire brands for manufacturers such as Goodyear, Yokohama, Kumho and Cooper.”
While it does not explicitly claim current off-take with Cooper, McRoberts clarified that Hangzhou does not produce Cooper tires. “For a brief period, Hangzhou Zhongce produced a limited number of truck tires for the U.S. market, but the company has never produced Cooper tires for Europe.” Instead, she explained: “All Cooper tires made in China are produced in our own facilities with no outsource to local China producers.”
Asked whether the Chinese manufacturer produces any brand of tire for Cooper to distribute outside Europe, the marketing and communications manager unequivocally replied, “Hangzhou does not produce any tires for Cooper under any brand name anywhere in the world.” (Tyres & Accessories)