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Machinery

JCB prospering despite weak economy

Hardened market circumstances failed to prevent JCB from delivering a standout result and growing their earnings by 34% in 2016, the company disclosed in a report.

In spite of a global market contraction of 1% in 2016, the Staffordshire-based machinery maker revealed that sales turnover rose by nearly 12% to £2.62bn (2015: £2.34bn), while machine sales increased to 66,011 (2015: 59,844).

JCB credited their vigorous performance to the fluctuations of the global market for construction equipment. Markets in select areas rose, namely India, where the market grew by approximately 40%, whereas markets in other areas declined heavily, such as Brazil, which was down by 40%, a report revealed.

JCB’s main nation of operations, the UK, took a hit as well, with the market shrinking by 5%, an annual report found. However, JCB was able to provide to other markets that had resurged and emerged once again to the forefront of the global landscape, especially European markets which rose by 10%.

JCB chairman, Lord Bamford, said: “While we face challenges in some parts of the world, the global construction market so far in 2017 is buoyant and is expected to grow further during the remainder of this year. We continue to launch innovative new products and enter new sectors which will enable JCB to secure strong levels of growth in the future.

“The UK market has got off to a particularly buoyant start this year, with housebuilding driving demand for compact and mid-range equipment, particularly telescopic handlers. In addition, there are some key infrastructure projects such as HS2 and Hinkley Point and Thames Tideway which are in the early stages of implementation, so customers are currently evaluating their fleet and machinery needs. Road improvements and widening schemes across the UK are also leading to increased demand for equipment.”

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