BERLIN, March 3 (Xinhua) -- After reporting higher revenues and net income of 444.8 million euros in 2019, the German intralogistics specialist and forklift producer KION announced on Tuesday that it would step up investments to drive medium- and long-term growth.
"Building on our success in 2019, we will be focusing on capital expenditure for the future in the new financial year," said Gordon Riske, chief executive officer (CEO) of KION.
A "key part" of KION's growth strategy was the sustained expansion of its business in China.
With an increasing electrification of industrial trucks in China, the construction of an additional factory for counterbalance forklift trucks in the eastern Chinese city of Jinan would enable KION to "broaden its product portfolio in one of the most important markets."
KION said it would invest around 100 million euros and create more than 800 new jobs at the new Jinan site in the province of Shandong by 2025.
For 2020, KION is expecting sales between 8.65 and 9.25 billion euros. The target range for adjusted EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) was set to 770 million to 850 million euros.
KION is expecting demand for industrial trucks to rise by about 4 percent annually worldwide and forecasted a high single-digit growth of demand for supply chain solutions.
"We will seize these opportunities by offering many new products, a broad portfolio, and an extensive range of services, software, and digital solutions," said Riske. (1 euro = 1.12 U.S. dollars)
