(Yicai Global) April 9 -- China’s excavator sales soared 85 percent in the first three months of the year due to a low base a year earlier and planned new spending on infrastructure projects after the country effectively brought the coronavirus outbreak under control.

Major Chinese digger manufacturers sold 126,940 units in the quarter ended March 31, the China Construction Machinery Association said in a statement yesterday.

Domestic sales, which made up almost 92 percent of the total, surged a bit more than 85 percent, while exports gained 82 percent. February was particularly fruitful as sales exceeded 28,300, the highest number ever reported for that month and a threefold increase from a year earlier.

In January and February, the heavy construction machines were in even bigger demand than during those two months in 2019, according to Bohai Securities.

The CCMA said the first-quarter gain was partly related to the pandemic. Last year’s base line was very low and some 28 provincial-level administrations have set out plans to spend about CNY3.2 trillion (USD488.4 billion) on fixed-asset investment in infrastructure projects this year.

There are other reasons too. The Ministry of Ecology and Environment tightened emissions standards for non-road mobile machinery late last year, which has likely prompted upgrading. Some regions have also recently promoted transport, energy, and water conservancy projects.

Digger sales are expected to stay strong on continuing high demand for infrastructure and real estate projects, Dongguan Securities said in a recent research note.Sales should rise 10 percent or so this year, as the global pandemic eases amid mass vaccination campaigns, Bohai Securities added.

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi