Pirelli aims to further strengthen its position in China, where it is already the leader in the Prestige and Premium segments, seizing the opportunity of a strongly growing local demand for high-end cars and motorcycles. An operation that has the full support of China National Chemical Corporation (ChemChina), the main shareholder of Pirelli for over three years, which will make its extensive sales network available to accelerate the development in China of the Italian partner's innovative and sustainable digital technology .
An increasingly organic and complementary alliance as underlined in this Tuesday's meeting in Beijing by Ren Jianxin, president of Chem China and Pirelli, and Marco Tronchetti Provera, executive vice president and CEO of Pirelli. In the last three years, Pirelli has become in fact the only "Pure Consumer Tire" globally, with a strategy focused on the High value segments.
Meanwhile, China has increasingly established itself as the world's leading market for the sale of prestige cars. And as such it could not fail to become an area of strategic importance for Pirelli for expansion in the Premium and Prestige segment.
Pirelli has been present in China since 2005 with two factories in Yanzhou and Jiaozuo, also signing individual agreements with local brands involved in the development of electric cars.
Ren Jianxin, in his speech, reiterated how ChemChina is increasingly committed to a global strategy, underlining how the alliance with Pirelli, with its innovative technology in products and processes, responds perfectly to this objective.
In turn, Tronchetti Provera has acknowledged the importance of the Chinese partner for growth in a market with great opportunities. And to support this common strategy and testify to the increasingly close alliance between Bicocca and Beijing, a Pirelli manager has been appointed CEO of China National Tire & Rubber Corporation (CNRC). This is Filippo Maria Grasso, Vice President of Institutional Relations of Pirelli.
Already in 2017, China accounted for about two thirds of the revenues generated in the APAC (Asia-Pacific), which grew by 14,3% to over 806 million euros. An area that records the highest growth rate for Pirelli. In particular, high-end products rose by 18,3% also thanks to an effective development of the commercial network with 3.700 outlets at the end of 2017.
