China’s insatiable demand for commodities has prompted a tripling in the price of mining-truck tires, making them more expensive than a Porsche 911 Carrera S type or a condominium in Miami.
Prices for tires about 11 feet across, used on the Caterpillar Inc. trucks that haul iron ore and coal, have touched $100,000 on the spot market, according to Leighton Holdings Ltd., a contractor for mining companies such as BHP Billiton Ltd. and Anglo American Ltd. Prices rose as high as $150,000 in 2008.
That compares with contract prices of about $30,000, according to Roesler Tyre Innovators GmbH, which retreads so- called off-the-road tires. Demand from China, the world’s largest metals buyer, drove copper, iron ore, gold and coal to records this year, forcing companies to compete for the equipment and labor needed to mine them. Bloomberg News Service
