The company increased spending on R&D in the year, with a new bike tyre evaluation.
Sales in the light duty foam tyres business were hit by coronavirus in the final quarter of the year. However, sales rebounded steadily from a heavily depressed level in April. Import tariffs on steel wheel rims from China continue to be a drag on the division.
Amerityre is promoting its new Elastothane 500 formulation in the polyurethane elastomer industrial tyres business. This is designed to offer higher static load-bearing capacity and greater abrasion resistance than closed-cell foam formulations. Sales into garden and lawn markets grew in 2020.
The agricultural tyres division was hit again by low farm commodity prices, with Chinese tariffs on US soybeans having hit US producers. Large OEMs and distributors serving the farming market believe the sector will not pay more for premium tyres.