As the FIA Formula 1 World Championship hosted an exceptional event at London’s O2 Arena to celebrate and mark its 75th anniversary, Pirelli, who is the global tyre partner of Formula 1, marked the beginning of its own celebration. The year 2025 is special for Pirelli too as it is set to hit the 500 Grands Prix mark during the coming season. On the occasion, the company revealed a version of the Pirelli logo that will be used for all its Formula 1 communication throughout the 2025 season.

Pirelli will reach the 500-mark at the Dutch Grand Prix on 31 August at Zandvoort, having participated in 485 championship events thus far. A week later, Pirelli will host a number of special festivities at its home event in Monza to commemorate this milestone. The company has planned a series of celebration activities, the first of which was the unveiling of the logo.

An analysis of the 50 most important Grands Prix during Pirelli's tenure on the F1 World Championship trail will be the first initiative, and it will be featured on Pirelli.com. The British Grand Prix, which took place at Silverstone on 13 May 1950, was the inaugural round of motor racing's blue riband category. That day, there were 21 cars on the grid, eight of which were equipped with Pirelli tires. All three of the top finishers were Alfa Romeos, with Giuseppe Fagioli and Nino Farina of Italy leading the field ahead of Reg Parnell of England. It was the first chapter in Pirelli's lengthy and continuous history in Formula 1, where the Italian business would provide the tyres this year with the longest record in the sport.

Italian tyre maker Pirelli announced that Chinese state chemical giant Sinochem’s control over the company has ended.

The board majority approved the end of Sinochem's control, with 9 out of 15 directors voting in favour, citing international accounting standards. Chairman Jiao Jian and four other Chinese directors cast the five dissenting votes, while another director abstained.

“The decision regarding the absence of control of the shareholder Sinochem represents a first, but not decisive, step on the path to the necessary adjustment of company governance to regulatory constraints in the USA," the company said in a statement.

Pirelli, a key player in the high-value tyre segment, noted that the USA is crucial for developing and distributing its Cyber Tyre technology.

The company also declared its financial results for 2024. Pirelli's 2024 consolidated net profit rose 1% to €501.1 million, compared with €495.9 million in 2023. Revenue increased by 1.9% to €6,773.3 million.

The company's adjusted EBIT margin improved to 15.7 percent of sales from 15.1 percent in 2023, while the EBITDA adjusted margin rose to 22.4 percent from 21.7 percent.

Pirelli confirmed its 2025 targets despite a "high level of uncertainty surrounding US tariffs" and said it has defined a mitigation plan should the announced measures come into effect.

The company's net financial debt position decreased to €1,925.8 million at the end of 2024, down from €2,261.7 million a year earlier

Chinese tyre maker Jinyu Tire Group has completed the passenger car tyre project in Vietnam as part of its strategy to return to the passenger vehicle tyre market. The group fully commissioned the plant, which can manufacture 10 million high-performance semi-steel radial tyres annually, in a ceremony on 15 April.

Launched in January last year, the project is an expansion of Jinyu’s existing truck & bus tyre production facility in Tay Ninh province, which currently produces two million TBR tyres annually. By the second half of 2026, the factory should be scaled up to full capacity. The company expects to produce 10 million TBR and 10 million PCR tyres annually across all of its production facilities once the initiative goes into full-scale production.

After a five-year hiatus to concentrate on the development of TBR tyres, Jinyu is making a triumphant comeback to the passenger vehicle tyre market with this landmark project. The facility has a testing unit, a technical R&D centre and automated manufacturing equipment. In order to guarantee that operations are traceable and controlled, the factory additionally uses intelligent management systems like MES, RDM and LIMS for real-time data collecting and analysis.

Chang Xianxu, Chairman, Jinyu Tire, said, "The successful completion of the PCR project in Vietnam is another breakthrough for Jinyu Tire in multiple dimensions such as high-end tyre manufacturing, technology research and development, production management and international operation capabilities. This also serves as a strong testament to Jinyu Tire’s unwavering commitment to the development and application of rubber tyre technologies and services, with the mission of delivering optimal value and experience to its customers. Upon full-scale production, the project is expected to reach an annual capacity of 10 million high-performance passenger and light truck (PLT) tyres by the second half of 2026. By then, Jinyu Tire will possess a dual production capacity of 10 million units each for TBR (Truck and Bus Radial) and PLT tyres, enabling the company to better serve and meet the needs of its global customers, while helping its global partners achieve greater business scale. This reflects a deep embodiment of the company’s core value – ‘Common Interests Above All Else’.”

Leading global tyre manufacturer Nexen Tire has successfully concluded its global partnership event, 'Purple Summit 2025,' which was held in Munich, Germany, from 25 to 27 April. Following the company's recent partnership with FC Bayern München, this year's event was held in Germany for the first time. Its goal was to increase the company's presence in important global markets, including Europe, North America, Asia and Latin America.

Nexen Tire's strategic vision of increasing brand trust and providing more original equipment (OE) to international automakers is embodied by the Purple Summit. The company utilises its sponsorship of FC Bayern München as a crucial marketing tactic in addition to raising brand awareness. About 50 business partners from 24 countries attended the 2025 event to learn more about Nexen Tire's worldwide expansion strategy and market objectives. In order to have a firsthand understanding of FC Bayern München's brand values and Nexen Tire's high-end sports marketing strategy, partners also took a tour of Allianz Arena and attended a live game.

Travis Kang, Global CEO of Nexen Tire, said, “The Purple Summit is an important forum for sharing Nexen Tire’s strategic vision in close collaboration with our worldwide partners. We will continue to improve brand credibility in major markets global markets and achieve long-term growth with our valued partners.”

China's Shandong Linglong Tire announced plans to invest USD 1.19 billion in a new manufacturing facility in Brazil, marking one of the largest Chinese investments in South America's automotive sector this year.

The project, located in Ponta Grossa in Brazil's southern Paraná state, will be developed through a joint venture with local distributor SUNSET S.A., with Linglong holding a 70 percent stake and the Brazilian partner taking the remaining 30 percent.

Construction is slated to begin in the third quarter of 2025, with full completion expected by the end of 2032 after three construction phases spanning seven years.

The new plant aims to produce 14.7 million tyres annually, including 12 million passenger car radial tyres, 2.4 million truck and bus radial tyres, and smaller volumes of engineering and retreaded tyres. The facility will also manufacture 6,000 tonnes of liquid reclaimed rubber yearly.

Linglong plans to finance the project with USD 600 million in self-funded capital and USD 593 million in bank loans. The facility will include a 35-megawatt solar power plant to support sustainable manufacturing practices.

The investment comes as Brazil's government has been actively courting foreign direct investment through various incentive programmes.

Linglong's venture partner, SUNSET S.A., reported revenue of USD 650 million in 2024 with net assets of USD 200 million, according to the announcement.

The project still requires regulatory approvals from Chinese government bodies, including the National Development and Reform Commission and Ministry of Commerce.