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Michelin & Cie., the world’s second- largest tiremaker, will target acquiring low-cost Asian rivals to expand in the region, said Jean-Dominique Senard, named today to become chief executive officer.

“These are markets we can’t ignore if we are to participate in global growth to the extent we’d like,” Senard said in an interview. The company’s low debt means “we don’t have to ask ourselves too many questions if we need to move.”

Senard, who succeeds Michel Rollier, will receive a four- year contract, subject to extension by the supervisory board, Michelin said. The move breaks a tradition of lifelong mandates.

The French tiremaker, which ranks behind Bridgestone Corp. in global production, raised 1.2 billion euros in a share issue last September to finance expansion plans that include factory investments in India, Brazil and China. Michelin plans to add plants to harness tire-demand growth averaging 9 percent in emerging markets, the company said at the time.

“Senard is the logical successor and the markets like him,” said Erich Hauser, a London-based Credit Suisse analyst with an “underperform” rating on the shares. “He has previous experience with raw-material mechanics that will come in handy starting this year.”

Michelin pledged to increase 2011 earnings before interest, tax and one-time items even as rising raw-material prices are expected to wipe 1.5 billion euros ($2 billion) from profit, and sales volume growth slows to 6.5 percent from 13 percent in 2010. Operating profit last year doubled to 1.7 billion euros.

Shares Advance Michelin rose as much as 2.52 euros, or 4.4 percent, to 59.60 euros and was 1.7 percent higher as of 1:31 p.m. in Paris trading. The stock has gained 8.1 percent this year, valuing the company at 10.2 billion euros.

Senard, 58, joined Michelin as finance chief in 2005 after holding senior executive roles at Total SA, Cie. de Saint-Gobain and aluminium-maker Pechiney. Michelin said shareholders will vote May 13 on the proposal to appoint Senard as a general managing partner alongside Rollier, 67, who will remain for at least 18 months.

Net income jumped 10-fold last year to 1.05 billion euros, beating the 911 million-euro average of 13 estimates compiled by Bloomberg, as higher freight traffic boosted truck-tire sales and vehicle production rose in Asia and North America. Revenue rose 21 percent to 17.9 billion euros. Net debt fell to 1.63 billion euros from 2.93 billion euros a year earlier.