Astec's sales down

摘要

Astec Industries reported fourth-quarter 2015 sales of US$215 million, down 10.2% on the previous year. Domestic sales increased 5.7% to $160.3 million for the period from $151.6 million in the fourth-quarter of 2014, but international sales decreased 37.8% to $54.7 million during the period from $87.9 million for the fourth-quarter of 2014. For 2015, net sales for the year were $983.2 million compared to $975.6 million for 2014, an increase of $7.6 million, and the domestic sales increased 10.4% to $722.3 million from $654.2 million for 2014. International sales were $260.9 million compared to $321.4 million for 2014, an 18.8% decrease. Benjamin G Brock, chief executive said: "The fourth-quarter proved to be a challenge. The primary cause of our disappointing performance was weak sales in the Aggregate and Mining Group and the Energy Group. These weak sales were caused by a slowdown in international mining operations due to a worldwide surplus of raw materials and a severe reduction in oil production and exploration brought on by the collapse of the price of oil. Also, both of these segments depend on international markets that have been depressed by the strength of the US dollar. In addition, although we were able to ship a $30 million pellet plant during the quarter, we had to defer the revenue for accounting purposes."