Demand for equipment remains strong for Hitachi through first half of fiscal 2023

Hydraulic excavators have continued to be in demand within North America, even as the need declined elsewhere in the world. Equipment demand for construction and mining helped drive Hitachi Construction Machinery to a solid result in its fiscal first half of 2023.

Hitachi reported a record total revenue in the first half of the fiscal year, ending September 30, 2023, of 674.1 billion Japanese yen, an increase of 16.4 percent over the same period in 2022. Adjusted operating income for the half was 82.379 billion yen, also a record thanks to an increase of 58.2 percent year over year. Net income attributable to owners of the parent amounted to 57.5 billion yen, up 61.2 percent for another record result.

Significant revenue increases in the American business, which has been undergoing full-scale independent development since March of 2022, helped drive the results, Hitachi noted. Revenue for North America reached 162.984 billion yen, an increase of 41.7 percent compared to the same six months of 2022.

Hitachi states that it expects the overall market environment to remain generally high overall moving forward through the rest of the fiscal year, though decrease in demand is likely in some regions and for some products.  Hydraulic excavator demand in China, elsewhere in Asia, and Europe, among other locations, is expected to be sluggish, but the North American market should remain strong thanks to infrastructure investment by the U.S. government.

Mining machinery demand is also expected to decline for smaller equipment, though ultra-large machinery should remain firm.

Because of the expected conditions, Hitachi has revised its consolidated earnings forecast for the full year upward to a revenue of 1,360 billion yen, the highest in the company's history.