As the cargo ship slowly left the shore, Zoomlion's ZT82J, the world's highest straight-boom aerial work platform, officially set sail for the Port of Bristol in the United Kingdom, where it will set a new European industry record with a working height of 82.3 meters.

In recent years, China's construction machinery exports have continued to grow, with export records for various products constantly being broken. From January to July this year, China's construction machinery import and export trade volume reached US$35.076 billion, a year-on-year increase of 10.5%. Of this, imports amounted to US$1.59 billion, up 4.13% year-on-year; exports reached US$33.486 billion, up 10.8% year-on-year.

Such growth is no accident. From 2021 to 2024, construction machinery product exports have grown rapidly for four consecutive years, and the pace of internationalization has advanced steadily. However, against a high base, can this high growth be sustained over the long term?

I. Where does the high growth of overseas markets come from?

The leapfrog development of overseas markets is of great significance to domestic construction machinery enterprises. In the short five years from 2020 to 2024, the overseas revenue share of A-share-listed construction machinery enterprises rose rapidly from 11.38% to 47.48%. Leading enterprises such as Zoomlion and Sany Heavy Industry have seen their overseas businesses contribute more than half of their operating revenue, becoming the "ballast" driving high-quality corporate development.

Today, growth in overseas markets continues, and the drivers of this growth can be divided into internal and external sources.

Internal drivers: product strength consolidates the foundation for growth

1. A complete industrial chain provides core support

China's increasingly powerful industrial chain is the underlying reason supporting growth in overseas markets. At present, China's manufacturing industrial chain is already highly complete, and in global market competition it possesses strong competitiveness in both product output and transportation, with this competitiveness still improving.

2. Product performance achieves a qualitative leap

The improvement in the performance of China's construction machinery products has provided strong support for accelerating expansion into overseas markets. In recent years, the performance of China's construction machinery products has continued to improve, offering greater cost-effectiveness compared with foreign products. Moreover, through continuous R&D, most core components of China's world-class products are now domestically produced and no longer constrained by foreign brands.

External drivers: global demand creates growth space

1. Traditional markets continue to unleash potential

Taking excavators, a representative type of construction machinery, as an example, according to customs data, in the first half of 2025 Indonesia ranked first among China's excavator export destinations with US$470 million in export value and 9,055 units exported. Among these, Indonesia's infrastructure boom and the continued release of demand for mineral development became the core drivers of China's excavator exports.

Russia ranked second among China's excavator export destinations with US$371 million and 3,564 units exported. Growth in the Russian market benefits from the deepening of China-Russia economic and trade cooperation and the Far East development strategy. Industry insiders generally expect the Russian market to remain stable and continue to grow.

2. Demand in emerging markets explodes

Infrastructure demand in emerging markets represented by Latin America, India, and Africa continues to grow. Domestically produced equipment with high cost-effectiveness and quality after-sales service is favored, and global penetration is gradually increasing.

Still taking excavators as an example. In the first half of 2025, exports to West Africa grew substantially. From January to June, China's cumulative excavator export value to Guinea reached US$191.2712 million, up 170.31% year-on-year from US$70.7589 million in the same period last year; cumulative export value to Mali reached US$164.1325 million, up 385.51% year-on-year from US$33.8060 million in the same period last year. Among other West African countries, from January to June 2025, cumulative export value to Ghana reached US$97.0507 million and to Côte d'Ivoire US$73.0474 million, both showing relatively high growth.

The growth of China's construction machinery exports to African countries is due, on the one hand, to their slow urbanization and inadequate infrastructure, which has led to strong demand for construction machinery. On the other hand, Africa is rich in mineral resources, accounting for 30% of the world's total, and various countries generally possess important minerals, resulting in strong demand for mining equipment such as excavators and bulldozers.

II. Variables on the path of growth

China's construction machinery industry is experiencing an upward phase in overseas markets, but over the long term it still faces many variables that may affect its development in overseas markets and deserve industry attention.

The first is the uncertainty of the global economy. The global economy is currently sluggish, and the international construction machinery market has not seen significant new demand. Combined with the high export base and high stock from earlier periods, this continues to put pressure on the growth of China's construction machinery exports.

The second is geopolitical and regional market volatility. Events such as tensions in some regions have led to supply chain disruptions in some markets. For example, although Russia is China's largest export market, its economy is overly dependent on energy exports, and fluctuations in international oil prices could weaken its equipment procurement capacity. In addition, some emerging markets (such as Africa) have unstable political situations and strict foreign exchange controls, increasing the risk of account collection.  

The third is trade barriers, such as the European and American markets restricting imports by raising tariffs and setting technical trade barriers (such as carbon emission standards and data security regulations).  

In addition, there is intensifying international competition. For example, international giants such as Caterpillar and Komatsu curb the expansion of Chinese brands through means such as technology blockades and patent litigation, while emerging manufacturing countries such as India and Turkey seize the mid- and low-end markets with low-cost advantages, creating a "two-way squeeze" on Chinese products.

On the other hand, the overseas development of China's construction machinery also faces internal pressures.

First, shortcomings in branding and channels. Compared with established giants such as Caterpillar, Komatsu, and Volvo Construction Equipment, which have decades or even a century of history, Chinese brands still have a clear gap in trust and premium capacity among global customers. At the same time, the "depth" and "breadth" of overseas localized channels and after-sales service networks are insufficient, further aggravating the weakness of brand competitiveness.

Second, some core components still face "bottleneck" risks. For example, in the engine field, engines for high-end equipment such as large excavators and large mining dump trucks still rely heavily on international brands such as Deutz, Cummins, and Isuzu.

Third, homogeneous competition and price wars. The products that Chinese construction machinery enterprises focus on in overseas markets (such as excavators and loaders) differ little from other brands in basic functions and performance. Especially in the mid- and low-end markets, the technical threshold for products is relatively low, leading to fierce homogeneous competition. As a result, some enterprises seize market share through price wars.

III. Outlook for overseas markets

Looking ahead, high growth in overseas markets cannot continue indefinitely and will inevitably undergo a shift from "high speed" to "high quality." To maintain long-term competitiveness, Chinese construction machinery enterprises need outstanding manufacturing cost efficiency, technological innovation, localized operations, and after-sales service capabilities. These factors not only determine enterprises' market share but also affect their capacity for sustainable development in different regional markets.

First, give full play to manufacturing cost efficiency. Chinese construction machinery enterprises have advantages in large-scale production, supply chain integration, and manufacturing costs, making their products more competitive in overseas markets. At the same time, they should further strengthen localized supply chain management in overseas markets, such as establishing production bases in target markets to reduce logistics and raw material procurement costs.

Second, deepen localized operations, shifting from "export trade" to "local manufacturing, local service, and local R&D." By deploying production, supply chains, and service systems in target markets, enterprises can provide overall solutions including finance, leasing, operation and maintenance, and equipment management, thereby enhancing customer stickiness and profit sources.

Finally, strengthen technological innovation. When competition in traditional products becomes deadlocked, on the new track of electrification and intelligentization, Chinese brands stand almost at the same starting line as international giants, or even with stronger momentum. China's construction machinery industry can leverage vigorous development of electrified, intelligent, and unmanned products to establish a globally leading advantage and achieve "lane-changing overtaking."

The overseas journey of China's construction machinery has passed its initial "barbaric growth period." The future track is a comprehensive contest of brands, technology, business models, and depth of localization. With continuously improving product strength, agile supply chains, and deep localization strategies, Chinese brands are expected to achieve a key leap from "participants" to "leaders" on the world stage. Challenges remain on this road, but the prospects are becoming clearer.