Caterpillar’s strong sales growth of the latter half of last year appears to be continuing in the early months of 2011.
February global sales at the machine giant grew by 59 percent over last year with Latin America recording a jump of 76%.
According to Cat’s latest SEC filing, machine sales in the Middle East, alongside Africa and Europe, also showed signs of recovery and grew by 53%.
The company added that engine sales also improved for Caterpillar by 31% but not as much as machinery sales. Caterpillar says its facilities in Tokyo, Akashi and Sagami were not damaged by the recent earthquake in Japan but added production was fluctuating from “day to day” because of the disaster.
Caterpillar says its own supply chain from Japan hasn’t been affected by the disaster but is looking to source components from other sources to prevent a shortfall in the longer term.
The Caterpillar Foundation will add a $1 million grant to the American Red Cross for disaster relief efforts in Japan and will match up to $500,000 in employee contributions.
