Continental's tire business in the Americas earned an adjusted EBIT margin of 8.7% in the third quarter of 2026, against 18.7% in its EMEA region, a gap of 10.0 percentage points that widened from 9.2 points a year earlier. The numbers come from the company's third-quarter results published on November 4, 2026, the first time Continental has reported its tire business split into three regions: EMEA, Americas and APAC.
On the same day, Continental raised its 2026 adjusted EBIT margin outlook for continuing operations to 13.4-14.0%, from 12.0-13.5%, after a quarter in which the group margin rose to 14.9% from 13.9%. The headline is strong, but the regional detail says the profit pool is concentrated: EMEA produced 53.6% of 2025 tire sales and, on our calculation, about 64.5% of regional operating profit, while the Americas produced 32.6% of sales and only about 18.8% of profit. The paradox is that the Americas already sells the richer mix: 66% of its Continental-brand car tire sales were ultra-high-performance (UHP) sizes of 18 inches and above in 2025, against 43% in EMEA.
The Americas Margin Gap Widened to 10.0 Points in Q3 2026
Three data points are now available for each region: fiscal 2025, the third quarter of 2025 and the third quarter of 2026. In all three, the Americas sits roughly half as profitable as the other two regions. EMEA moved from 16.7% for fiscal 2025 to 17.7% in Q3 2025 and 18.7% in Q3 2026. The Americas moved from 8.0% to 8.5% and then 8.7%. APAC, the smallest region, was 16.9% for 2025, 19.0% in Q3 2025 and 18.6% in Q3 2026.
The gap between EMEA and the Americas was 8.7 points on the full-year 2025 figures, 9.2 points in Q3 2025 and 10.0 points in Q3 2026. Some of that is seasonal, because the third quarter carries European winter tire sell-in, which Continental named as a driver of EMEA's improvement. But the direction matters: the Americas margin improved by 0.2 points year on year while EMEA added 1.0 point.
Sales moved in the same direction as margins. Third-quarter EMEA tire sales were €1.9 billion, up 0.4%. Americas sales were €1.1 billion, down 5.0% from €1.2 billion. APAC sales rose 4.7% to €476 million. Continental attributed the Americas decline to weak replacement markets in North and South America, partly offset by a higher UHP share and smaller tariff costs than a year earlier.
| Region (Tires) | FY2025 sales | FY2025 adj. EBIT margin | Q3 2025 margin | Q3 2026 sales | Q3 2026 margin | UHP share of car tire sales, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EMEA | €7.4 billion | 16.7% | 17.7% | €1.9 billion (+0.4%) | 18.7% | 43% |
| Americas | €4.5 billion | 8.0% | 8.5% | €1.1 billion (-5.0%) | 8.7% | 66% |
| APAC | €1.9 billion | 16.9% | 19.0% | €476 million (+4.7%) | 18.6% | 70% |
Table note: sales and margins as reported by Continental on November 4, 2026. UHP share refers to Continental-brand passenger car tire sales of 18 inches and above.
Europe Earns 64% of Regional Profit on 54% of Sales
Multiplying each region's 2025 sales by its adjusted EBIT margin gives an approximate profit split. EMEA's €7.4 billion at 16.7% implies about €1.24 billion. The Americas' €4.5 billion at 8.0% implies about €360 million. APAC's €1.9 billion at 16.9% implies about €321 million. On that basis, EMEA generated about 64.5% of regional tire profit, the Americas 18.8% and APAC 16.8%, against sales shares of 53.6%, 32.6% and 13.8%.
These are our estimates from rounded published figures, and they exclude central costs that sit outside the regions, so they will not match the group total of €13.8 billion in sales at a 13.6% margin exactly. The direction is still clear. If the Americas had earned the EMEA margin in 2025, the extra profit would have been about €390 million, roughly a fifth of the whole tire business's 2025 adjusted operating result.
Continental describes EMEA as the "earnings backbone" and lists the reasons: a high share of replacement business for car and light commercial tires, a broad brand portfolio, long-standing distribution partnerships and logistics that deliver more than 95% of dealer orders in Europe within 24 hours. Those are structural advantages built over decades. They also explain why EMEA is profitable with the lowest UHP share of the three regions.
A 66% UHP Mix Has Not Fixed Americas Profitability
The industry assumption is that bigger rims mean better margins. Continental's own data supports that at group level: UHP tires rose from 49% of Continental-brand car tire sales in 2020 to 60% in 2024 and 62% in 2025, while the tire margin held between 13.1% and 13.7% from 2022 to 2025 despite raw-material swings, tariffs and weak replacement demand. Continental is adding more than 650 new UHP specifications by the end of 2027.
The regional split breaks the simple link. APAC (70% UHP) and EMEA (43% UHP) earned almost identical 2025 margins of 16.9% and 16.7%. The Americas, at 66% UHP, earned 8.0%. Mix lifts margins within a region, but it does not explain the difference between regions. Continental itself names the drags in the Americas: geopolitical developments, tariff uncertainty, exchange rates, subdued demand and underused truck tire capacity.
Tariffs alone were material. In its fiscal 2025 results of March 4, 2026, Continental said the tariff burden in the tire business exceeded €100 million in 2025. Against Americas operating profit of roughly €360 million, that is a large number, though the company did not say how much of it fell in the region.
North American Replacement Demand Is Shrinking While Europe's Grows
The market backdrop explains part of the divergence. The U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association's July 2026 forecast, published August 6, 2026, expects U.S. replacement passenger tire shipments of 218.3 million units in 2026, down 1.6% from 221.9 million in 2025. Replacement light truck shipments are forecast down 1.6% and replacement truck tires down 7.1%, to 22.9 million from 24.7 million. In total, the association projects replacement shipments about 5.9 million units lower.
Europe moved the other way. Tyres Europe reported on August 5, 2026 that member sales of consumer replacement tires rose 3% in Q2 2026 and 2% in the first half, with all-season tires up 15% in the quarter and truck and bus tires up 13%. Continental's first-half 2026 release put the same contrast in one line: the European car and light commercial replacement market grew 3% in Q2 while North America declined 1%.
Original equipment did not help. Continental reported that global light vehicle production fell about 1.6% in Q3 2026, with Europe roughly flat, North America down 5% and China down 6%. A plant network sized for higher North American volumes absorbs fixed costs over fewer tires when both OE and replacement demand contract, which is consistent with the underutilization Continental cites.
Raw Materials Are the Next Test for the Raised Outlook
The raised outlook should be read alongside Continental's warning. CFO Roland Welzbacher said higher raw-material prices "are increasingly affecting our earnings and will impact us even more in the fourth quarter." In Q2 2026, by contrast, raw materials were a tailwind: the tire group sector margin reached 15.3%, up from 12.1% a year earlier. Adjusted free cash flow for continuing operations fell to €31 million in Q3 from €99 million, a 69.0% drop, even as adjusted EBIT rose 6.7% to €514 million.
The new guidance range of 13.4-14.0% on sales of €13.5-13.9 billion compares with the original March 2026 tire guidance of 13.0-14.5%. Continental also raised adjusted free cash flow guidance to €1.0-1.3 billion from €0.7-1.1 billion. With the first nine months strong, the range implies a softer fourth quarter, consistent with the raw-material warning. Historically the third quarter has been a high point: the tire margin was 14.6% in Q3 2024 and 14.3% in Q3 2025, as reported at the time.
For the Americas, a raw-material squeeze is harder to absorb from an 8.7% starting point than from 18.7%. Continental's stated aim is to return the region to double-digit margins, which means finding at least 1.3 more points from the Q3 2026 level through more UHP and premium sales, better plant utilization and a stronger position in the USA and Canada, plus new 4x4 and light truck products.
What the Regional Split Means for Buyers and Competitors
Tire makers. Continental's disclosure gives rivals a benchmark. A premium brand with a 66% UHP mix earning 8.7% in the Americas suggests that mix upgrades alone will not close margin gaps in North America; capacity utilization, tariff exposure and replacement channel strength carry as much weight. Makers with idle U.S. truck tire capacity face the same arithmetic as truck replacement shipments fall 7.1%.
Distributors and dealers in North America. A supplier that wants double-digit regional margins while volumes shrink will push price, mix and allocation. Expect firmer pricing on 18-inch-plus sizes, more selective promotional support and pressure to take light truck and 4x4 ranges as Continental fills those gaps.
OEMs. Continental sees growth in supplying Chinese manufacturers entering Europe, and on November 5, 2026 announced that Volkswagen chose its tires for the new ID. Cross. With North American production down 5% in Q3, OE pricing in the region is unlikely to be the lever Continental uses to fix margins; replacement is.
Raw-material buyers and suppliers. Continental has flagged a larger raw-material headwind in Q4 2026. Suppliers of natural rubber, synthetic rubber and carbon black should expect tougher negotiations on Americas volumes, where a tire maker has less margin to absorb cost increases.
Investors. The group now trades as a near pure-play tire company. Its 14.9% Q3 margin is a blend of two businesses: EMEA and APAC near 18-19%, and an Americas business below 9%. Progress in the Americas, not further gains in Europe, is the larger swing factor for group earnings. For background on the regional markets, see Radial's reports on the North America passenger car tires market, the Europe passenger car tires market and the replacement tires market.
Methodology and sources
All Continental figures are as reported in the company's releases. Regional profit estimates are our calculations: each region's reported 2025 sales multiplied by its reported adjusted EBIT margin, then divided by the sum across regions. They exclude unallocated central costs and are approximate because sales are published in rounded billions. Q3 2026 group figures refer to continuing operations, which since August 2026 consist essentially of the tire business. Year-earlier quarterly comparisons use the figures Continental published in each release; prior-year regional numbers are as restated in the November 2026 release.
- Continental AG, results for the first nine months of 2026 (November 4, 2026): regional sales and margins for Q3 2026, Q3 2025 and FY2025; UHP shares by region and over time; Q3 group figures; raised 2026 outlook; Q3 vehicle production.
- Continental AG, results for the first half of 2026 (August 4, 2026): Q2 2026 and Q2 2025 tire margins; European and North American replacement market changes in Q2.
- Continental AG, fiscal 2025 results (March 4, 2026): 2025 and 2024 tire sales and margins; UHP share 2024 and 2025; tariff burden; original 2026 guidance.
- Continental AG, fiscal 2023 results (March 7, 2024): 2023 and 2022 tire margins.
- Continental AG, results for the first nine months of 2025 (November 6, 2025): Q3 2025 and Q3 2024 tire margins as reported at the time.
- U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association, July 2026 forecast (August 6, 2026): 2026 U.S. replacement shipment forecasts by segment.
- Tyres Europe, replacement tyre sales Q2 2026 (August 5, 2026): European replacement sales changes by segment.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Americas earned an 8.7% adjusted EBIT margin in Q3 2026, against 18.7% in EMEA, a gap of 10.0 percentage points. For full-year 2025 the margins were 8.0% and 16.7%.
Not across regions: UHP sizes were 66% of Americas car tire sales in 2025 but only 43% in EMEA, yet EMEA earned 16.7% against 8.0%. APAC, at 70% UHP, earned 16.9%.
About 64.5% of 2025 regional tire profit came from EMEA on 53.6% of sales, by our estimate from reported sales and margins. The Americas produced 32.6% of sales but about 18.8% of profit.
On November 4, 2026 it raised the adjusted EBIT margin outlook for continuing operations to 13.4-14.0%, from 12.0-13.5%, and adjusted free cash flow to €1.0-1.3 billion.
USTMA expects U.S. replacement passenger shipments to fall 1.6% in 2026 and replacement truck tires 7.1%, while Continental cites tariffs, exchange rates and underused truck tire capacity.
Continental targets double-digit Americas margins, at least 1.3 points above the Q3 2026 level of 8.7%, through more UHP and premium sales, better plant utilization and new 4x4 and light truck products.