A Doosan Infracore 80-ton excavator digs up earth in this photo provided by Doosan Infracore. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
SEOUL, May 20 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean construction equipment makers, led by Doosan Infracore Co., are set to bask in increased sales in China as the world’s No. 2 economy is ramping up efforts to rebound from the coronavirus outbreak, industry data showed Wednesday.
Doosan Infracore, South Korea’s No. 1 construction equipment maker, sold 3,239 excavators in April, up 2.8 percent from a month earlier, taking up 7.5 percent of the world’s largest excavator market, according to industry data provided by the China Construction Machinery Association.
No. 2 player Hyundai Construction Equipment Co. sold 1,533 excavators last month in China, up 65 percent from a month earlier, the data showed.
Hyundai Construction Equipment’s market share there stood at 3.6 percent.
A total of 43,371 excavators were sold in April in China, up 65 percent from a year earlier.
Market watchers said Korean construction equipment makers will see a steady rise in their sales, as China is moving to boost its economy.
“China’s construction machinery market showed signs of a boom from March thanks to an economic recovery (from the fallout caused by the COVID-19 pandemic),” Kim Hong-kyun, an analyst at DB Financial Investment Co., said in a recent report.
The Chinese government’s large-scale pump-priming policies will help Korean construction equipment makers rack up solid sales there, according to Hwang Eo-yeon, an analyst at Shinhan Investment Corp.
Beijing is expected to reveal additional stimulus measures for the virus-hit economy in its biggest annual political meetings, such as the annual plenary session of the National People’s Congress, to be held starting May 21.
Reflecting a solid performance in China, Doosan Infracore has been on a roll on the Seoul bourse.
Shares in Doosan Infracore rose 3.77 percent to 5,780 won (US$4.70) on Wednesday, outperforming the broader KOSPI’s 0.46 percent gain.
China’s industrial output rose 3.9 percent on-year in April, the first monthly increase since January, when the coronavirus started spreading across the country.
South Korea’s overall exports of excavators came to US$730 million in the January-March period, down 11.6 percent from a year earlier.
(Yonhap)
