CNH NO. 1 IN AUSTRALIA
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LUGANO, Switzerland - (February 10, 2010) - Record breaking results in 2009 for CNH's agricultural brands in Australia where the combined results of New Holland Agriculture and Case IH Agriculture achieved the market leading position.
Franco Fusignani, Head of CNH International, during a business visit to Australia, stated: "This has been an excellent year for our agricultural brands, New Holland Agriculture and Case IH Agriculture, in the Australian market. We achieved leadership in the tractor, in the combine and in the baler segments; our brands not only achieved the first position in the market since June 2009 but further improved and consolidated their positions by the end of the year."
- Market Outlook -
Market conditions were positive, as observed Mr. Fusignani, due to a series of factors: "In 2009 the tractor industry grew to 11,500 units topping a third year of consecutive industry recovery, sustained by continued confidence in agriculture and good rainfall across many areas of Australia, particularly early in the winter cereal season. Additionally, industry sales benefitted from the Federal Government's Investment Allowance, which offered a tax rebate of 50% on depreciating capital investments for businesses with a turnover of less than AUS$2 million."
- New Holland Agriculture: the major jump in market share across all tractor segments-
"New Holland Agriculture saw significant gains in share in all major segments. The brand leverages on one of the largest product offerings in the industry which also encompasses tractors for specialized need - orchards and vineyards -, forage harvesters and grape harvesters that are market leaders in the industry. Positive results were particularly relevant in every tractor segment, with a focused approach on the compact tractor business, targeted mid range as well as the higher horsepower tractor ranges, " he highlighted.
"First to be mentioned was the T7000 Auto Command?, built on the success of the award-winning T7000 tractor series which was awarded Tractor of the Year 2010. The T7000 Auto Command range further improves fuel economy, productivity, comfort and class-leading power-to-weight ratios enabling Australian customers to achieve the best return on their investment.
New Holland Agriculture obtained excellent results with the versatile T6000 tractor range, an ideal choice for sugarcane and haying operations, heavy loader work, roadside mowing or row crop applications. Best selling products also include the powerful T8000 tractor and the flagship T9000 4EWD, ranging from 370 to 594 horsepower, which makes short work of big-acre farming and earth-hauling jobs.
Additionally, the brand presented its new BB9000 range of large rectangular balers to the market, helping to grow its market leading position in this segment.
It also introduced the CR9080 twin rotor combine, positioned as the highest capacity combine available in Australia, and released Blue Future, a new retail finance program for its customers aimed at making purchasing easy and financially viable," he commented.
- Case IH, best in class results in the combine segment -
"Case IH gained market share as farmers realized the benefit of the efficiency and value of Case IH's products. The gains were made throughout the ranges but were especially notable in the 60-100 horsepower tractor segment and in the above 140 horsepower segment. Case IH's new Maxxfarm range proved a popular choice as a great value tractor and loader combination, highly sought after by small landholders," he added.
"At the other end of the range, Case IH achieved good results in the traditionally strong above 140 horsepower segment, as the Agritechnica '2009 Machine Of The Year' award-winning Puma CVT, Magnum and Steiger ranges continued to provide Australian farmers with the ideal combination of power, performance, productivity and precision they need on large acreages.
Case IH experienced excellent gains in combine harvester sales as the 88 and 20 Series Axial-Flow® combines cemented their position as the professional farmers' choice of harvester. Profound dealer expertise in high horsepower tractors and combines all added up to enable Case IH to secure more business in 2009, while the innovation and productivity of our class-leading cotton pickers, sugar cane harvesters and sprayers represent a growing opportunity for today's farmers," he remarked.
Mr. Fusignani concluded: "All this contributed to our outstanding results: the right mixture of quality products supported by teams of specialized personnel with an excellent spirit of dedication and expertise toward the customer. On this basis, I believe we can further improve and consolidate our positions in 2010."
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CNH
CNH Global N.V. is a world leader in the agricultural and construction equipment businesses. Supported by more than 11,300 dealers in 170 countries, CNH brings together the knowledge and heritage of its Case and New Holland brand families with the strength and resources of its worldwide commercial, industrial, product support and finance organizations. CNH Global N.V., whose stock is listed at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE:CNH), is a majority-owned subsidiary of Fiat S.p.A. (FIA.MI). More information about CNH and its Case and New Holland products can be found online at www.cnh.com.