Sales of construction equipment rose 13 percent in the second quarter, reports Volvo Construction Equipment, compared to the same period in 2020. Volume was about $3 billion for the quarter.
Although sales in Asia, including China, account for the largest share of sales, that market dropped 12 percent in the quarter. Volvo cited a decline in infrastructure investment.
Adjusted operating income amounted to about $388 million for the quarter, corresponding to an adjusted operating margin of 13.1 percent.
Orders were up 35 percent in the quarter over last year, attributed to “a more confident customer outlook and increased investment across most markets.” The company says demand for large and medium-sized machines remained strong and higher than for compact machines. Due in large part to higher sales in Europe and North and South America, the latter of which saw a 120-percent increase in deliveries from the same period last year, overall deliveries increased by 5 percent in Q2.
Through May, sales have benefited from high customer activity across industry segments, more than positively impacted by increasing volumes in the European, North American and South American markets. In Europe, the majority of countries continued their recovery to see a 30-percent increase measured in units from the same period last year. North America saw a 35 percent rise thanks to high infrastructure and housing construction activity.
Source: Volvo CE
