CNH boasts record sales

Equipment manufacturer CNH has reported sales of £1.9bn for the second quarter of 2005, up from £1.8bn for the same period last year, while profit also increased to £64m from £46m in 2004.

The company said worldwide sales of its agricultural equipment were down 3% for the quarter but construction equipment posted an increase of 13% to £620m. 

Two regions contributed to this growth: North America and South America were up 15% and 50% respectively. Sales in Europe decreased by 2%, but the company said this was primarily due to its brand rationalisation which took place in the first quarter of 2005.

“Turnover was better than expected, despite an anticipated deterioration of the agricultural sector in Latin America,” said Harold Boyanovsky, CNH president and ceo. “Higher materials costs and shortages of some key supplies constrained results. We expect these trends to impact our performance in the second half of the year.”