Highest ever first half year sales for Palfinger

Palfinger headquarters in Bergheim, Austria. Photo: Palfinger

Austrian loader crane, aerial work platform and materials handling equipment manufacturer posted its highest ever first half year sales results.

Half year revenue for the whole of Palfinger was €1,214.9 million, up 16.9 per cent on the first half of 2022. This figure is all the more impressive when you consider the slow rate of economic development due to high interest rates and inflation, plus war in Ukraine.

Contributing factors to the growth included implementation of price increases, having a good product mix, lower raw material prices and shipping costs, plus easing of supply chain restrictions.

North American expansion

Alongside the opening of a new headquarters for North America, strong local sales of forklifts will see expansion of production there, to an annual total of 1,700 units by 2027, the company said. The already strong sales there will help the company towards its forecast to achieve a further record revenue for the full year 2023, of €2.4 billion.

Business from the EMEA region in the first half year saw a “significant decline in incoming orders – particularly from the construction industry,” Palfinger said. The company still has a high order backlog to work through.

Palfinger forecasts a decline in orders received from EMEA countries as a result of high interest rates impacting the construction industry. Looking further ahead, the company has a target to hit annual revenue of €3 billion for 2027.