85 years of innovation, quality and growth: premium tyre manufacturer Hankook is celebrating its company anniversary. What began in 1941 in South Korea as a small industrial enterprise under the name “Chosun Daiya Industrial” is today one of the world’s leading tyre manufacturers with eight production sites across five continents, 20,000 employees and a presence in more than 160 countries. Today, Hankook has seven regional company headquarters, five development centres and 39 local subsidiaries.

Leading car manufacturers trust on Hankook

85 years of technological development have made Hankook a sought-after tyre supplier for the original equipment market. At present, the company has 50 OEM partnerships worldwide with leading car manufacturers – many of them in Europe. In this anniversary year, Hankook received a special recognition: Auto Bild named the company the “Top Manufacturer of the Year 2026” in the summer tyre category based on outstanding results in multiple tyre tests.

Global motorsport partner

Hankook plays a significant role in motorsport too. As an exclusive tyre supplier and Official Technical Partner to the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, Hankook demonstrates that high performance and sustainability are not mutually exclusive. Since 2025, Hankook has also been the exclusive tyre partner for another FIA world championship, the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC). Additionally, Hankook is the technical partner and exclusive tyre supplier for the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Series. Since the beginning of the year, Hankook has underlined its strategic importance in international motorsport as a Global Partner of the FIA, strengthening its close cooperation with the world federation. The parties’ shared goal is to promote innovation, sustainability and safety in motorsport and future of mobility.

Sustainability as a driver for growth

At Hankook, the anniversary year also marks progress towards a more sustainable future of mobility. In 2025, the company was awarded the highest “A” leadership rating in the “Climate Change” category by the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) for the second time. In 2024, Hankook launched the iON GT, the first EV tyre to get an EU tyre label bearing a triple A rating – consisting of up to 77 per cent ISCC PLUS-certified sustainable raw materials. The “Net Zero by 2050” goal has been defined in accordance with the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and is consistently pursued.

A record financial year as a foundation

Hankook’s strong performance in this anniversary year builds on a solid foundation: in 2025, the company recorded global consolidated sales of KRW 21.2022 trillion (EUR ~13.19 billion) and an operating profit of KRW 1.8425 trillion (EUR ~1.15 billion). In the tyre business, sales reached KRW 10.3186 trillion (EUR ~6.42 billion), up 9.6 per cent year-over-year, surpassing KRW 10 trillion in annual sales for the first time since the company’s foundation.

Consistent further development in Europe

Hankook currently employs nearly 4,000 people in Europe and generates around 45 per cent of its total sales here. Hankook started production in Europe in 2007, and broke ground on the expansion of its Hungarian plant in February 2025. A new production line for truck and bus tyres, with a capacity of up to 800,000 units per year, is set for completion there by 2027. The total investment amounts to 540 million euros. With the new facility, Hankook will create 450 additional jobs at the site.