China’s construction machinery industry rebounds strongly in Jan-Feb

Domestic Demand Recovery

Surge in Sales: According to the China Construction Machinery Association, domestic excavator sales reached 11,640 units in February 2025, a 99.4% year-on-year increase. Cumulative sales from January to February reached 17,045 units, up 51.4% year-on-year, ending three consecutive years of decline. 

Mini excavators saw particularly strong growth due to fragmented construction demands like farmland water conservancy projects.

Increase in Utilization Rate: Komatsu’s official data shows excavator operation hours in China reached 56.8 hours in February 2025, a 100.7% year-on-year increase. Cumulative operation hours from January to February totaled 122.8 hours, up 13.39% year-on-year, the highest same-period figure since 2022. 

Sany Heavy Industry reported a national construction machinery utilization rate of 37.38% from January to February 2025, up 2.92% year-on-year. The excavation equipment utilization rate reached 42.61%, up 3.79%, with central regions seeing a 6.02% increase.

Policy Drivers & Industry Outlook

Accelerated Replacement Demand: The 2025 Government Work Report plans to issue CNY 1.3 trillion in ultra-long-term special treasury bonds and CNY 4.4 trillion in local government special bonds for projects like water conservancy. Phase I/II emission standard equipment is being phased out faster, and equipment from the last boom cycle is entering replacement periods. Replacement demand is expected to be the key growth driver in 2025.

Strong Overseas Expansion: China exported 14,737 excavators from January to February 2025, a 7.37% year-on-year increase marking seven consecutive months of growth. 

Hunan province’s construction machinery exports to ASEAN rose 49.3% year-on-year, with significant contributions from markets like Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. Domestic companies are expanding overseas through “lease-to-sell” models and used equipment exports.

24 Mar 2025 reported by Machinery News