Liugong Machinery's forklift business declined slightly during the global recession.

Liugong Machinery wants to grow its forklift business through acquisitions if the right opportunities come up.

In an exclusive interview with Forkliftaction.com News, Liugong Forklift Americas vice president David O' Dell says Liugong Machinery's forklift business has so far exceeded its expectations for 2010. "We are happy to say our forklift business is improving a little faster than we had forecasted for 2010... We are optimistic that the effects of the recession are shrinking and the forklift markets in many areas are rebounding quickly."

O'Dell says he can't reveal publicly listed Liugong's forklift sales volume, but maintains the company continued investing in its forklift business during the economic downturn.

"Certainly our business declined [slightly] during the global recession. We believe that we were not impacted as much as some of our competitors, and we have continued to invest in growing the forklift business and not changed our new model introduction schedules."

China Knowledge Press reported that about 25% of Liugong's RMB10.2 billion revenue in 2009 came from forklifts, cranes and other machinery, and that the company is seeking expansion opportunities.

"We would act on [acquiring forklift companies] if the correct situation were to present itself," O'Dell says.

Liugong counts Heli, Dalian, Hangcha, Doosan, Clark and Hyster as its competitors.

"We are all well-known forklift manufacturers who participate in exporting to many countries outside of our manufacturing base so customers search for these brands when shopping for forklifts," O'Dell says.

Liugong manufactures internal combustion and electric Class 1 and Class 5 forklifts. It produces 2-16 ton internal combustion forklifts with Tier 1 and Tier 3 engines. About 10% of its products are for export.

Liugong's forklift business employs 400 people and the company has a presence in 80 countries.