– Zoomlion’s 2018 profit jumps 51.65 percent
– Sales grew 23.3 percent to 28.697 billion yuan
– Industry expected to continue to benefit from gov-led investment in 2019
Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science and Technology Co, (SZSE:000157) a leading Chinese maker of engineering equipment, posted a 51.65 percent jump in 2018 earnings, as a focus on intelligence and strict cost control boosted profitability and financial strength.
“Zoomlion has adopted new approaches, unleashed new development momentum, and emerged from the bottom of a U-shaped growth curve, to enter a new stage of quality-driven capacity growth,” Chairman Zhan Chunxin said in the annual report, published on March 29.
Zoomlion’s net income attributable to shareholders increased 51.65 percent to 2.02 billion yuan in 2018, while sales grew 23.3 percent to 28.697 billion yuan. Gross margins jumped nearly six percentage points to 27.09 percent thanks to cost-cutting in finance, management and marketing. The company’s operating cash flow jumped 77.63 percent to a record 5.064 billion yuan, paving the way for healthy, sustainable growth.
In 2018, China’s construction machinery industry benefited from an economically stable domestic market, and increased demand for new equipment as a result of Beijing’s stepped up environmental and infrastructure investment policies. Taking advantage of favorable conditions, Zoomlion merged its core business of manufacturing with a new digitization strategy, accelerating its transformation into an “intelligent manufacturer” with “smart products.”
In the construction sector, the company steadily expanded market share in existing segments, entered new arenas and improved both the scale and quality of hero-line products.
Zoomlion maintained its top market share in the construction crane machinery and concrete long-arm pump truck sector; launched an integrated network for the G-series next-generation earth moving machinery products; and charged into theaerial work platform sector, releasing eight high-end, intelligent models across three categories in October.
Zoomlion entered the industrial Internet field with the founding of ZValley Company and established themselves as an AI-equipment maker.
Globally, Zoomlion continues to speed up the development of overseas production bases, forming local manufacturing clusters along the “One Belt, One Road” initiative. Expanding operations in several countries the company has:
– Upgraded the Italy-based CIFA from a regional firm into a global company
– Fostered the establishment of m-tec in China to introduce the German high-end manufacturing and service standards to the country
– Continuously accelerated the construction of the China-Belarus Industrial Park project
Looking ahead, Zoomlion will continue to strengthen its management and technology capabilities and embrace the future of technologically integrated engineering equipment.
