17.05.2004

Kobelco crane Revenues up 34 percent

Kobelco Construction Machinery Co., Ltd. Today announced its financial results for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2004. Overall the market for construction equipment in Japan finally began to improve with demand rising for the first time in seven years. Kobelco claim that the domestic market for construction equipment as a whole rose by 11 percent. While exports of equipment rose by 32 percent. Improvement was widely based, geographically.

For the group as a whole sales rose by 17 percent to 184 billion yen, (£910 million), while Operating income jumped by 79 percent to 8 billion yen (£40 million) and Net profit leapt by an astonishing 293 percent to 2,824 million yen (£14 million). One key statistic of note was the doubling of sales to China, which continues to take as much earthmoving and lifting equipment as the world can throw at it!

Crane sales rose a substantial 33.9% to 24.8 billion yen (£122 million); During 2003 Kobelco cranes concentrated its efforts on building its specialised sales and service networks. As part of this programme and to strengthen its distribution in Europe and North America, Kobelco formed two wholly owned and dedicated crane marketing companies, beginning a split away from the Kobelco construction equipment business. It is also planning to open dedicated crane sales offices in Shanghai and the Middle East. Kobelco also reported that sales of large-size cranes were firm due to development projects in China and the Korean shipbuilding industry.

During the year the company signed a crawler crane agreement with Manitowoc whereby Kobelco will supply its lattice boom crawler crane models of under 150 U.S. tons on an OEM basis to Manitowoc Crane Group in the Americas region. Shipment of the first crane took place in April.

Kobelco and Manitowoc signed another agreement for the supply of Grove’s all-terrain cranes to Kobelco. These all-terrain cranes will be furnished to Kobelco on an OEM basis under the Kobelco brand name and will be sold exclusively by Kobelco in Japan. Kobelco intends to introduce the cranes to Japan in 2005.

Since April 2004, the crane business has become an independent subsidiary of Kobe Steel called Kobelco Cranes Co., Ltd. As such it will no longer be reported by Kobelco Construction Machinery. Kobelco Cranes' sales in fiscal 2004 are projected to reach 28 billion yen (£139 million) with pretax ordinary income of 120 million yen (£594,000).