The construction machinery industry is entering an upward trajectory of recovery. The industry's sales continue to grow, supported by positive catalytic factors in the short term. Thanks to the strong support of the policies of the Two Sessions, the mid-term demand recovery trend of the industry is expected to be consolidated. At the same time, the acceleration of internationalization and electrification processes has created conditions for top enterprises to achieve dual growth in scale and profit (synonymous with "simultaneous increase in quantity and profit").

According to financial data from 18 host manufacturers and 9 component suppliers, both revenue and profit of listed companies in the domestic construction machinery industry will increase in the first quarter of 2025. Specifically, the revenue of the whole machine sector reached 91.55 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 10.3%; The net profit attributable to the parent company was 8.88 billion yuan, an increase of 33%. The revenue of the parts sector was 4.58 billion yuan, an increase of 14.2%; The net profit attributable to the parent company was 840 million yuan, an increase of 6.2% year-on-year. However, there is still room for improvement in the overall gross profit margin level of the industry. In the first quarter, the average gross profit margin of listed companies was 25.1%, a slight decrease of 0.4 percentage points compared to the same period last year. Among them, the gross profit margin of the whole machine was 24.7%, a year-on-year decrease of 0.3 percentage points; The gross profit margin of components was 31.9%, a decrease of 2.6 percentage points.

As equipment widely used in infrastructure real estate, municipal and rural construction, mining and other fields, construction machinery is known as the macroeconomic "barometer". Currently, compared to the domestic market, overseas markets are continuing to contribute incremental space to the industry.

According to data from the China Construction Machinery Industry Association, the total import and export trade volume of the industry from January to April 2025 was 18.947 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 8.51%. Among them, the import value was 877 million US dollars, a slight decrease of 0.86%; The export performance is impressive, with a total amount of 18.07 billion US dollars, an increase of 9.01%.

Yang Dongsheng, Chairman and Party Secretary of XCMG Group, elaborated on the group's future strategic goals: "On the basis of exceeding 100 billion yuan in scale, we strive to double the scale by 2030 and increase the proportion of international revenue to over 60%." A Thai XCMG dealer confirmed this internationalization trend, stating that Chinese construction machinery has attracted more and more Thai companies to purchase Chinese excavators and other equipment with more competitive price and quality advantages (synonymous with "better than competitors, widening the competitive gap"). The dealer revealed that it has purchased new energy loaders worth over 100 million yuan, reflecting the accelerating expansion of China's leading electrification wave overseas.

This trend of electrification is also significant in the domestic market. In the first four months of 2025, the sales of electric loaders in China surged to 8139 units, a year-on-year increase of 254.8%; The penetration rate of electrification has risen to 19.3%, a significant increase of 14.3 percentage points compared to the same period last year.

Guangda Securities analysis points out that greening and electrification are one of the core directions for the future development of construction machinery. Domestic manufacturers are leveraging electrification to achieve curve overtaking (synonymous with "constantly overtaking"), which is expected to accelerate the electrification transformation of the entire industry, thereby driving further growth in revenue and profits for OEMs. In addition, the export of a large number of second-hand machinery to developing countries overseas objectively reduces the domestic equipment inventory and has become one of the factors driving the sales of new machines.

Looking ahead to 2025, China's engineering machinery exports will face both opportunities and challenges: uncertainty brought about by changes in the Russia Ukraine situation, growing demand for infrastructure and mining equipment in Southeast Asia, Africa, and the Middle East markets, untapped penetration potential in high-end markets in Europe and America (synonymous with "penetration rate enhancement"), and uncertainty risks in US China tariff policies. However, with the continuous deepening of overseas layout by leading domestic enterprises, the export of construction machinery is expected to maintain its growth momentum.(This article is from the official website of Jian Dao www.seetao.com. Reproduction without permission is prohibited, otherwise it will be prosecuted. Please indicate Jian Dao website+original link when reprinting.) Jian Dao website strategy column editor/Yang Beihua