Profit tumbles for top construction equipment firm

Sany Heavy Industry, one of China’s top construction equipment makers, said its revenue fell by nearly 20% and its profit tumbled nearly 50% in the first half of the year, the result of intense competition amid a slowdown in new construction, Caixin reports. In its midyear report, Sany described the current environment as “in the midst of a slowdown, with signs of stability,” referring to demand for its products such as cranes and bulldozers. Sany and its rivals had thrived over the last two decades on a construction boom that saw China spend billions of U.S. dollars on new infrastructure such as roads and dams, as well as buildings. But that growth has slowed sharply in the last year as the housing market became saturated and the overall economy slowed.