South Korea’s largest tire manufacturer eyeing Serbia for first factory in Europe – Investment worth USD 703 million

Kumho Tire, South Korea’s largest tire manufacturer and one of the 10 largest tire manufacturers in the world, is considering Serbia as one of the options for opening its first factory in Europe. In addition to Serbia, two other European countries have entered the shortlist of potential locations. – We have narrowed down the candidate locations for our European factory to Poland, Serbia and Portugal and are actively evaluating them – said Kumho Tire CEO Il-taik Jung in April.

Kumho plans to complete the construction of its first European tire factory in the next two years, and will allocate more than USD 703 million for this investment by 2027.

Jung emphasized that the company would make a decision on the final location of the factory after reviewing all geopolitical and trade factors, including the US 25% tariff on auto parts, Korean media and media specialized in the auto tire sector reported.

The company is looking to reduce logistics costs while strengthening its presence in the region’s premium tire market. Kumho expects the European plant to meet demand from major European automakers amid the Red Sea shipping crisis. The South Korean manufacturer has signed original equipment supply contracts with a number of European automakers including Volkswagen Group, BMW and Mercedes-Benz in recent years, and now hopes that local production in Europe will help it win more contracts with top European car brands.

Kumho currently has eight tire manufacturing plants located in South Korea, China, the United States and Vietnam, and the European plant would be the ninth in the portfolio of the tire conglomerate, which has been operating since 1960 and is present in more than 160 countries worldwide. Kumho Tire produces a wide range of tires for various vehicles, including cars, vans, trucks and even fighter jets.

B. P.

Kumho Tire

Il taik Jung

manufacture of car tires

first factory in Europe

construction of factory in Serbia