According to a recent announcement by HOMAG, the group’s order intake declined in H1 2023, but was able to increase its sales.
Order intake decreased to €671m in the first six months of 2023, compared to the previous year of €1,031m. As of 30 Jun 2023, the order backlog decreased to €930m, compared to the previous year of €1,269m.
“This slowdown in order intake does not come as a surprise,” emphasised CEO Dr Daniel Schmitt. “After two years of exceptionally high investments, our customers are now more cautious due to high inflation and interest rates. We see this in all global regions.”
However, as a result of the high order backlog at the beginning of the year, HOMAG Group sales rose to €817m in H1, exceeding the figure of €782m of the previous year.
At €56.8m, EBIT before special items was close to the previous year’s level of €58.6m. It was impacted by lower earnings contributions from service, as many customers are not operating at full capacity as a result of subdued consumer demand, therefore requiring fewer spare parts and other services.
In addition, one-off costs and higher R&D costs were incurred for the LIGNA trade show in May.
“We have adjusted to the more difficult market environment and declining order intake by implementing efficiency and cost-saving measures in order to strengthen our profitability,” Dr Schmitt said.
“At the industry’s leading trade show LIGNA, we were able to inspire our customers with numerous innovations and create new investment incentives. We are confident that we will benefit from this as soon as the market situation improves again.”
