Bad weather, trade wars, and low commodity prices did not keep John Deere from having a pretty good year. Wednesday it reported financial results for the fiscal year that ended in October, and it recorded the second highest net income in company history.
Spokesman Ken Golden credits Deere's focus on technology and innovation.
"A little bit of a mixed message, in that we continue to do well because of great products and great technology. And having a strong operating model where we can control costs. But also there's a market influence there around trade, tariffs, and the global economy that influences our outcome as well."
Sales for the year rose 5 per cent to 39.2 billion dollars, and net income jumped 37 per cent to 3.2 billion.
Golden says the outlook for the coming year is very uncertain.
"We have a lot of good indicators that people are re-investing in equipment, but until that comes to fruition, we don't know for sure where that will play out."
For 2020, Deere is now forecasting somewhat lower net income than 2019 - between 2.7 and 3.1 billion dollars.
( Ag & Turf Division - sales rose 2 per cent in fy 2019 to 23.6 billion dollars, but are now predicted to drop 5-10 percent in 2020)
(Construction & Forestry Division - sales rose 10 per cent in fy 2019 to 11.2 billion dollars. Forecast for 2020 is a decline of 10-15 per cent)
