Jungheinrich says it has performed well against the backdrop of Covid-19 and achieved a good quarterly result in the first quarter of 2020.
In the first three months of the year, incoming orders remained at the same value as the previous year despite the growing pandemic disturbance. Incoming orders by unit fell by 3% compared to the same period last year, while the global market for materials handling equipment fell by a significant 9%. Revenue fell by 3%.
Production at the Jungheinrich plants continued at an adjusted level and supply chains are largely intact. The only break in production was due to supply chain delays in the Moosburg plant, with production resumed immediately after Easter.
Overseas Jungheinrich locations operated without greater restrictions even in the face of local governmental regulations. After-sales service technicians are active all over the world to the extent that this is possible under local conditions.
“Protecting the health of our employees and our customers as well as safeguarding our delivery capability are the top priorities for Jungheinrich,” says Jungheinrich chairman of the board of management Lars Brzoska. “Our efforts last summer to make the company more ‘weatherproof’ paid off and we were therefore able to react immediately to the first signs of crisis.”
The uncertainty surrounding the future consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on global economic development means reliable estimates cannot currently be made about business development over the remainder of the year. In light of this, the board decided a few weeks ago to retract the forecast for the 2020 financial year published in the 2019 annual report.
Since the beginning of April, all regions and product segments have seen significant decline in demand, which will lead to a significant drop in incoming orders and revenue. The forecast will be updated as soon as global containment efforts cause the pandemic to slow down and the impact on the further business development of Jungheinrich over the rest of 2020 becomes reliably quantifiable.
“Jungheinrich has a future-oriented business model, a solid liquidity reserve and a healthy statement of financial position. Through their dedicated work, our teams all over the world are successfully helping us to overcome challenges through our crisis management. I am firmly convinced that, on this basis, we will emerge from this crisis stronger,” Brzoska adds.
