Harley Davidson earnings up
TEXT OF STORY
TESS VIGELAND: Detroit automakers, as you’ve no doubt heard, are struggling mightily to turn a profit off four wheels. Meanwhile over in Milwaukee, Harley Davidson is doing just fine on two. Chuck Quirmbach has more.
CHUCK QUIRMBACH: Harley-Davidson said yesterday second quarter earnings rose three percent, pepped up by a double-digit increase in international sales.
Japan and Europe seem especially interested in the big bike with the twin-cam engine.
Analyst Tom Graves of Standard & Poor’s says the market for Harleys overseas is still relatively small compared to the US. But he says company is working to improve worldwide distribution networks.
TOM GRAVES: “There will be better opportunities for market share gains overseas and outside the US than there are in the US itself. I mean the US I see as a relatively mature market for Harley.”
In June, the company opened a dealership in China and plans to launch others in India and Vietnam.
In Milwaukee, I’m Chuck Quirmbach for Marketplace.
There’s a lot happening in the world. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you.
You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible.
Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.