Quick answer: global forklift orders are forecast to grow roughly 6% in 2026, but the growth is uneven — Europe is buying on replacement and automation, China exports grew 21% in H1, and India is electrifying fastest. For solid tyre buyers the practical consequences are concrete: more electric warehouse trucks, more press-on and PU specifications, and more replacement-cycle purchases where tyre spec gets renegotiated. Here is what the mid-year data means for your next order.
2026 at a Glance: The Mid-Year Numbers
Global forklift orders in 2026 are projected to grow by approximately 6% year-on-year, according to the forklift industry mid-year review by Interact Analysis (data through August 2026). The headline number looks moderate — but the growth gap between regions now exceeds 10 percentage points, and that spread matters more for tyre buyers than the average.
- Global order growth 2026: approximately 6% year-on-year (Interact Analysis, August 2026 data)
- United States: 3–5% full-year order growth, constrained by soft warehouse construction and capital investment
- China: 6–8% order growth; H1 2026 sales of 862,000 units, up 16.6%, with exports up 21.0% (318,000 units)
- Europe: approximately 4.5% order growth, driven by replacement demand and automation upgrades rather than new capacity
- India: 7.9% order growth — the strongest among the top ten markets, with rapid electrification replacing internal combustion models
- Brazil: 7.0% order growth, moderating from 14.0% in 2025
JABIL Technical Note
These figures are market forecasts published by Interact Analysis, not guarantees. Use them to time purchases and negotiate lead times — not to plan fleet capacity.
Europe: Replacement-Driven Growth Changes When Tyres Get Specified
Europe's projected 4.5% order growth is not coming from new warehouse capacity — Interact Analysis attributes it primarily to replacement demand and automation upgrades. Germany's manufacturing activity appears to have bottomed out in late 2025 and is recovering, while Spain is on track for the strongest growth in Europe at close to 10% in 2026 after an 18.5% surge in 2025.
For tyre buyers this matters because replacement cycles are exactly when tyre specifications get renegotiated. A counterbalance truck bought in 2019 was often specified with whatever compound was cheapest at delivery. When that truck is replaced in 2026–2027, the new specification should reflect how the operation actually runs today — typically more electric trucks, more indoor operating hours and tighter floor-care standards. That usually means moving from a standard hard compound to a non-marking or application-matched compound, and for electric sit-down trucks, from press-fit solids to press-on band tyres.
China: Export Demand Is Outrunning Domestic Demand
China sold 862,000 forklifts in the first half of 2026, up 16.6% year-on-year — but the split matters for sourcing decisions. Domestic sales grew 14.2% (544,000 units) while exports grew 21.0% (318,000 units), according to Interact Analysis. Export demand, not domestic consumption, is carrying the market.
For importers and dealers, strong export volume is good news for availability — but it also means the market gets crowded with trading companies reselling unbranded product. When volume rises, quality consistency is the first thing that gets squeezed. Buyers scaling up orders from Chinese factories should insist on batch-level QC documentation — hardness, dimensional checks and non-marking test reports per batch — rather than catalogue certificates. See our manufacturing and QC overview for the documentation set to request from any supplier.
Warehouse Automation Keeps Pulling Demand Toward Press-on and PU
The demand mix is shifting toward the truck types that run on press-on tyres and PU wheels. Interact Analysis's Voice of Market survey found e-commerce companies are the most bullish on automation spending for 2026, with an automation spend index of 82.9 against a neutral midpoint of 50 — and nearly half of buyers expecting growth anticipate capex increases of more than 15%.
Automated and electric warehouse fleets — reach trucks, order pickers, narrow-aisle trucks and AGV/AMR vehicles — overwhelmingly run on press-on (band) tyres or polyurethane wheels rather than pneumatic-style solids. Fleet growth in this segment translates directly into demand for the 15×5×11 1/4 to 23×10×16 press-on range and for PU drive and load wheels.
- Electric sit-down forklifts: browse the press-on tyre range, and see the press-on tyre guide for how the three-number size format works
- Stackers and pallet trucks: see the PU wheel range for drive and load wheels
- Counterbalance replacement in food and cold chain: non-marking and cold-resistant compounds — see the cold storage tyre guide
What to Do Before Your Next Order
Four actions follow directly from the mid-year data:
- Re-spec at replacement, not at breakdown: when a truck is due for replacement in 2026–2027, renegotiate the tyre specification against today's duty cycle, not the original delivery spec
- Check load ratings on electric conversions: lithium battery packs change axle loads, so confirm the tyre load index still matches the heaviest configuration the truck will see
- Verify supplier QC at batch level: with export volumes up 21% in H1 2026, ask for hardness, dimensional and non-marking test reports per batch, not per catalogue
- Lock lead times early for press-on and PU sizes: automation-driven demand concentrates on a narrow size band, so the popular sizes (15×5×11 1/4, 18×7×12 1/8, 21×8×15) tighten first
When you have the sizes and compounds listed, a solid tyre quotation with batch documentation takes one form submission — or browse the full forklift solid tyre range first.
Have questions about your specific application?
Frequently Asked Questions
What is driving the 2026 forklift solid tyre market?
Three things: replacement demand from the existing installed fleet, stricter clean-floor requirements pushing sites from pneumatic to solid tyres, and raw-material cost volatility that makes compound choice a purchasing decision rather than a technical footnote.
Should importers buy ahead in 2026?
Where a size is stable and storage is available, front-loading orders smooths out raw-material spikes. Where demand is uncertain, shorter, more frequent orders are safer. The right answer depends on your inventory cost and your customers’ lead-time expectations.
Which regions are growing fastest for solid tyres?
Warehouse and logistics construction in Southeast Asia, the Middle East and parts of Eastern Europe continues to add electric truck fleets, and every one of those trucks needs solid tyres at replacement time.
How can a dealer protect margin in a volatile market?
Standardise on fewer sizes and compounds to buy in larger volumes, and keep a supplier that can hold a quoted price for a stated validity window. Mixing many small orders across many suppliers is what erodes margin fastest.