JATMA Forecasts Japanese Tire Demand for 2025 and 2026 Jan. 7, 2026. - On December 16, 2025, the Japan Automobile Tire Manufacturers Association (JATMA) released its Japanese domestic tire demand forecast for 2025 and 2026. According to the forecast, total tire demand for 2025 is expected to exceed that of 2024 across all categories—new car tires, aftermarket tires, and two-wheeled vehicle tires. Specifically, total demand for 2025 is expected to increase by 2% […]
Sumitomo Rubber Adopts Sustainable Carbon Black for First Time in Mass-Produced Tires Jan. 6, 2026. - Sumitomo Rubber has become the first company to use resource-circulating carbon black, made from chemical recycling of used tires and other rubber materials, in some of its mass-produced passenger car tires. Production of these tires has begun at the Miyazaki plant in November 2025, accelerating the company’s efforts toward resource circulation. Resource-circulating carbon black is produced through the chemical recycling […]
Sumitomo Rubber Adopts Sustainable Carbon Black for First Time in Mass-Produced Tires Jan. 6, 2026. - Sumitomo Rubber has become the first company to use resource-circulating carbon black, made from chemical recycling of used tires and other rubber materials, in some of its mass-produced passenger car tires. Production of these tires has begun at the Miyazaki plant in November 2025, accelerating the company’s efforts toward resource circulation. Resource-circulating carbon black is produced through the chemical recycling […]
METI Revises Eco-Car Subsidy in Line with US-Japan Tariff Agreement Jan. 6, 2026. - The Eco-Car Subsidy is set for a revision. According to an announcement made by the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) on December 18, 2025, the subsidy cap for electric vehicles (EVs) will be raised by 400,000 yen, bringing it to 1.3 million yen ($8,300). Meanwhile, the subsidy for fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) will be reduced by ¥1.05 million […]
JATMA Forecasts Japanese Tire Demand for 2025 and 2026 Jan. 7, 2026. - On December 16, 2025, the Japan Automobile Tire Manufacturers Association (JATMA) released its Japanese domestic tire demand forecast for 2025 and 2026. According to the forecast, total tire demand for 2025 is expected to exceed that of 2024 across all categories—new car tires, aftermarket tires, and two-wheeled vehicle tires. Specifically, total demand for 2025 is expected to increase by 2% […]
Yokohama Rubber Launches Tire Solutions Service for Taxi Operators Jan. 5, 2026. - Yokohama Rubber and its group company, Okinawa Yokohama Tire, have announced the launch of a tire solutions service for taxi fleets in collaboration with the Okinawa East Traffic Business Cooperative Association. This service began in mid-December 2025 and integrates air pressure sensors with the next-generation tire management system, “T.M.S.” The service aims to enhance safe operation, reduce tire-related costs and […]
Power Transmission Belts See Strong Sales in 2025: Gates Unitta Asia Dec. 19, 2025. - Gates Unitta Asia expects higher sales in its Japanese domestic general industrial belt business for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2025. By market, sales to semiconductor manufacturing equipment, its largest customer segment, increased on a full-year basis, although demand has recently shown signs of weakening. “In the first half, performance was strong as we produced and shipped orders received […]
Fujikura Composites Posts Record-HighProfits Dec. 18, 2025. - Fujikura Composites reported record-high operating and ordinary profits for the first half of the fiscal year ending March 31, 2026, supported by a recovery in industrial materials and a favorable product mix. For the April–September period, net sales increased 2.9% year-on-year to 20.23 billion yen ($130.68 million). Operating profit rose 19.3% to 2.68 billion yen, while ordinary profit climbed 15.2% […]
Sumitomo Rubber Adopts Sustainable Carbon Black for First Time in Mass-Produced Tires Jan. 6, 2026. - Sumitomo Rubber has become the first company to use resource-circulating carbon black, made from chemical recycling of used tires and other rubber materials, in some of its mass-produced passenger car tires. Production of these tires has begun at the Miyazaki plant in November 2025, accelerating the company’s efforts toward resource circulation. Resource-circulating carbon black is produced through the chemical recycling […]
Sumitomo Riko Launches SG Building as Symbol of Vision 2029 Dec. 15, 2025. - Sumitomo Riko has commenced full-scale operations at the Sumitomo Riko Green Transformation Building (SG Building), constructed as a core hub for its infrastructure and living environment business. Built at the Komaki Plant in Komaki, Aichi Prefecture, the SG Building consolidates chemical products operations that had previously been dispersed across the site and serves as a model factory that achieves a […]
Top Interview: President Tomio Ueno of Bando Chemical Sep. 2, 2025. - In an interview with Tomio Ueno, President of Bando Chemical, we discussed the company’s current business performance, the progress of its medium- to long-term management plan Creating New Value for the Future 1st Stage (CV-1), and the status of its overseas production bases. Regarding the situation overseas, Ueno explained that market conditions in Asia vary by country and timing. India, […]
Interview: Hideki Ogawa, President of Nishikawa Rubber Jan. 27, 2025. - Japan Rubber Weekly recently sat down for an interview with Hideki Ogawa, president of Nishikawa Rubber, to discuss the year ahead. “In 2025, we will continue to take on any challenge with elastic ideas,” Ogawa said. Also actively promoting the use of AI and automation, the company is on track to develop new products and technologies that are expected to […]
Bridgestone and AIST Develop Technology to Chemically Recycle Used Tires Dec. 17, 2025. - The National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) announced that a research team led by Senior Researcher Yoshihiro Ueda, in collaboration with Bridgestone, has developed a chemical recycling technology for tire rubber. By combining chemical decomposition at near room temperature with a subsequent thermal decomposition process, the team successfully recovered isoprene and carbon black. The technology paves the […]
Sumitomo Riko Develops High-Capacity Seismic Control System Dec. 12, 2025. - Sumitomo Riko has developed a new building material product, tentatively named the High-Capacity Seismic Control System, which has obtained Japan’s top-tier Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) certification for wooden structures: a wall strength ratio of 5.0. This ratio represents one of the highest public standards for structural capacity in wooden buildings. The new system incorporates high-performance friction […]
Japan Glove Manufacturers Association Publishes 2024 Glove Sales Volumes Apr. 18, 2025. - According to the 2024 Japanese domestic glove sales volume statistics compiled by the Japan Glove Manufacturers Association, household glove sales reached 73.253 million pairs, down 1% year-on-year, nearly flat. Nitrile gloves alone grew by 14%, but cautious buying due to a sluggish market continued to suppress demand post-COVID. Ultra-thin gloves (excluding medical use) totaled 5.405 billion pieces, up 6% and […]
CEMA Publishes Construction Machinery Demand Forecasts for Fiscal 2024 and 2025 Mar. 7, 2025. - The Japan Construction Equipment Manufacturers Association (CEMA) recently released its construction machinery demand forecasts for fiscal 2024 (April 2024-March 2025) and fiscal 2025 (April 2025-March 2026). The forecasts were compiled based on a questionnaire survey conducted in January among 61 construction equipment manufacturers that are regular members of the association. According to the survey, in fiscal 2024, Japanese domestic shipments […]
