Sany excavators at a Sany Heavy Industry training center in Wuhan. Credit: Imaginechina via AP Images
Companies have long paid top dollar to be the first brand that travelers see on arrival at Hong Kong International Airport. But the name they are likely to spot immediately these days isn’t HSBC or some high-end retailer. Thanks to the army of excavators working on the airport’s expansion, it’s Chinese company Sany.
Along with China’s other heavy equipment makers, Sany Group is enjoying a boom in international business. Despite inflationary pressures and high freight costs, global demand for excavators and diggers is strong, owing in part to the mining and oil boom in 2022 stemming from high commodity prices.
China’s real estate crisis and broader economic slowdown mean that its equipment providers are looking to international markets to drive sales, competing with industry leaders like the U.S.’s Caterpillar and Japan’s Komatsu. Top Chinese firms including Sany Heavy Industry (Sany’s listed subsidiary), Zoomlion and XCMG have experienced double-digit growth
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