Navistar Says Military Orders Boosting Business
Navistar International Corp. said Tuesday its first-quarter results reflect “soft market” as shipments of trucks and buses fell 37% from a year ago, but said military orders were increasing.
Shipments of buses and medium- and heavy-duty trucks declined to 18,720 in the three months ended Jan. 31, from 29,680 for the same period a year ago, Navistar said in a statement.
The company is still attempting to catch up on its financial filings after releasing its 2006 results earlier this month, and said it plans to become current in its filings by mid-year. (Click here for previous coverage.)
Military sales will rise to as much as $2 billion annually, helping offset a slowdown in commercial fleets, said Navistar, the parent company of International Truck and Engine Corp.
“The commercial truck market is beginning to improve slowly but clearly it is still tough going,” Chief Executive Officer Daniel Ustian said in statement.
“To help offset cyclical downturns, our strategy has been to build successful and sustainable businesses in military and export markets . . . . And we are well positioned in our truck and engine businesses with strong products to respond to demand when the market does recover,” he said.
Shipments from military contracts, joint ventures such as recreational vehicle contracts and exports will be about 40,000 to 45,000 this year, or a third of deliveries, Ustian said.
Navistar was awarded a Defense Department contract, along with Britain-based BAE Systems, last week to provide blast-resistant trucks for the U.S. military to use in Iraq.
