Manitou bullish for 2011

Telehandler manufacturer 2106 Manitou reports strong financial performance in 2010. The company reports revenues of €243 million for the fourth quarter of 2010 alone, representing a climb of 35% from the previous year. Meanwhile for the full financial year Manitou's revenues hit €838 million, jumping 23% from the figures obtained in 2009. The firm reports a strong order intake, which reflects better market conditions although its backlog shows that it still has to ramp up output. Jean-Christophe Giroux, Manitou president & CEO said, "It's been a strong Q4 and a good finish for 2010 which will remain as the year of the rebound. Even if market conditions are still very tough to read, we cannot deny a better environment, and a catch-up effect in renewal cycles. The rebound has been spectacular with Compact Equipment in North America, but coming from a very low level; on a two-year sequence 2008-2010, the different patterns even out and all three divisions are down -43%. Now, with orders up 48% in Q4 versus Q3, year-end backlog is close to 7,500 units. The flipside is that we still cannot source components fast enough to deliver on this demand." Giroux added that he expects market conditions to continue to improve in 2011.