China construction equipment makers ramp up competition

According to the Financial Times, China’s construction equipment makers are ramping up the competition against global leaders such as Caterpillar, Komatsu and Deere and appear set to discount products to build market share, a new study has found. The Chinese companies — which include Sany, Zoomlion and XCMG — are likely to boost their market share outside China to around 15 per cent by 2025, up from an estimated 7 per cent currently (see chart), according to research by UBS Evidence Lab, which analysed about 15,000 construction equipment dealerships around the world. The biggest competitive advantage of the Chinese companies is a relatively low cost base that allowed them to offer discounts.