JCB Notes high profits on demand in Africa and the Middle East
While constructing sector is not in the best shape, UK-based giant JCB Ltd informed that it noted record annuals earnings in 2012. It is not surprising at all that the company trots out its outstanding profits as the global construction sector is indeed going through tough times. The JCB's results were mainly driven by increased demand in regions such as Africa and the Middle East.
2012- Good year for JCB
The figures released by JCB Ltd showed that the British company saw its earnings increase approximately 2.8 percent to as much as £365 million in 2012 from £355 million it made a year earlier. More important, the 2012 earnings of the company mirrored its best performance in almost 70-year history. In addition, the company informed that its sales amounted to around £27 billion in 2012, compared to roughly £27.5 billion recorded in 2011.
Despite the fact that the global market shrank by staggering 10 percent, UK-based JCB Ltd informed that its machine sales vaguely jumped to about 69,250 in 2012, compared to sales of 69,100 noted in the previous year.
In addition, the figures indicated that demand slumped nearly 40 percent in China, 7 percent in India and around 6 in the home market. On the other hand, demand surprisingly climbed as much as 28 percent in Brazil, Russia and North America. JCB Ltd, which in fact depends on foreign markets as they amount to approximately four-fifth of its business, underlined that its performance was driven mainly by regions such as Africa and the Middle East. The figures released by the company indicated that the UK-based manufacturer witnessed an outstanding doubling of its business in the region of Africa, while the business in the Middle East climbed approximately 12 percent. But the fact is that JBC Ltd also enjoyed a 20 percent uptick in its business in the Americas.
Sir Anthony Bamford, chairman of JCB Ltd underscored: "In view of the continued fragility of the global economy, which has led to renewed slowdowns in emerging and developed markets, JCB's results in 2012 are extremely encouraging," adding that the results were clear evidence that all investments finally started bearing fruits. Furthermore, he underlined that the performance was mainly driven by demand for agricultural products which at the same time visibly balanced weak demand for construction equipment.
Citations for JBC's performance
The results, which were released by JCB Ltd, were indeed a pleasant surprise taking into account that the UK-based manufacturer suffered from low demand in European countries. While the company is carefully optimistic when it comes to projecting 2013 results, Sir Anthony Bamford underlined that the beginning of the year was satisfactory.
Analysts praise the strong results of JCB and note that the company opened a new factory in Sao Paolo, Brazil, in 2012. And that is not all as the UK-based manufacturer will also launch a new facility in Jaipur, India, in 2014. Indeed, when it comes to investment, the company plays hard but at the same time it does not forget about its factories located in the UK.
Also the government of the UK appreciates all achievements of JCB Ltd and underlines that the family-owned company is one of the top contributors of the country's manufacturing sector, which has been undeniably suffering since the beginning of the global financial crisis, as the company created almost 25,000 positions, including the supply chain. Therefore the strong performance in 2012 augurs well for the future of JCB Ltd.
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