According to the statistics of major excavator manufacturers by China Construction Machinery Industry Association, 18,822 excavators of various types were sold in April 2024, a year-on-year increase of 0.27%, including:
10,782 units in China, a year-on-year increase of 13.3%;
8,040 units were exported, down 13.2% year-on-year.
From January to April 2024, a total of 68,786 excavators were sold, a year-on-year decrease of 9.78%; Thereinto:
37,228 units in China, a year-on-year decrease of 2.9%;
31,558 units were exported, a year-on-year decrease of 16.7%.
1
The domestic market is close to bottoming, and the decline in sales has narrowed
In April 2024, there will be 10,782 units in China, a year-on-year increase of 13.3%;
From January to April 2024, there will be 37,228 units in China, a year-on-year decrease of 2.9%;
As shown in the figure above, since 2024, the monthly sales of excavators in the domestic market have increased positively three times, and the cumulative domestic sales from January to April have decreased by 2.9% year-on-year, and the decline has gradually narrowed. However, judging from the downstream start situation and the number of operating hours of Komatsu excavators, there are no obvious signs of recovery in the downstream market. According to the survey of the Centennial Construction Network, there is no sign of improvement in the current market capital situation, there are fewer new projects, and the continuation of the project maintains a good growth trend, but it is partially subject to extreme weather, the overall increase is relatively limited, and it is difficult for the demand to rebound significantly in the short term. In April, Komatsu excavators, the number of operating hours in China was 97 hours, a year-on-year decrease of 3.2%.
In the absence of a significant recovery in domestic real estate and infrastructure demand, the decline in domestic sales has narrowed, indicating that the current sales volume is close to bottoming, and there is little room for further decline. However, in the absence of obvious stimulus, the upward inflection point may continue to be delayed.
2
Exports fell by 13.2%, and there is still room for overseas shares to more than double
In April 2024, 8,040 units were exported, down 13.2% y/y.
From January to April 2024, 31,558 units were exported, a year-on-year decrease of 16.7%.
Since May 2023, the monthly export sales of excavators have been higher than the domestic sales, accounting for more than 50% for 10 consecutive months, and the cumulative sales in 2023 are also greater than the domestic ones.
Starting from March 2024, under the two-way trend of declining exports and domestic growth, domestic sales will exceed export sales.
At present, the capacity of the overseas construction machinery market is much larger than the domestic market, and the global market share of the head enterprises is less than 10%, and the domestic leading enterprises have great room for development in the overseas market. However, based on the high base of overseas sales in 2023, the overseas growth rate may not be as expected in the short term.
3
The electric excavator market is smaller
In April 2024, 5 electric excavators (1 unit from 10 to 18.5 tons and 4 units from 18.5 to 28.5 tons) were sold. For the first time this year, the sales data of electric excavators were included in the official statistics of the association, but the current sales data and overall scale are not large.