TAICHUNG, Taiwan (BRAIN) —Giant Manufacturing, closing its books on 2017, posted revenue for the year of $1.9 billion, a 3.5 percent decline from 2016.
Referring to its 2017 revenue, Giant said that if it were to exclude the foreign exchange impact from an appreciating Taiwan dollar, its results for the year would have been essentially flat.
After-tax income were also down year-to-year by 33 percent to $70.3 million; that loss in after-tax income is partially due to foreign exchange losses. Earnings per share were about 19 cents.
Giant, a bellwether company within the industry's manufacturing sector, is taking a conservative approach as it projects growth for 2018.
"The outlook for 2018 — Giant projects single-digit sales growth for the group," a Giant spokesman said in a press release Tuesday. "E-bikes will continue to drive growth in the European region and Giant will continue expanding into other cycling experiences like (traditional) bikes, accessories and components that are (being) driven by consumer demands," the spokesman said. Those demands will support Giant's brand as it grows sales in the global market, he added.
The company will review its outlook for the remainder of the year at its annual board meeting set for June 22.
In terms of global performance, sales in Europe and the U.S. outperformed other regions, posting double-digit sales when tracked in local currencies. While the overall U.S. market was flat last year, Giant outperformed the market in both unit sales and dollars, the spokesman said. As for Europe, Giant's growth there is directly tied to the continued demand for e-bikes.
Giant — like other manufacturers with factories based in China or those brands trying to sell through conventional retail stores — said China's fascination with shared-bike programs has cut deeply into sales. Giant noted that such traditional bike sales in China "remained sluggish" throughout the year.
"China's domestic market remains challenging, but the decline will narrow," the company predicted.
