Effective Jan. 1, 2017, AGCO will restructure its Asia Pacific region to include Africa.
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| Gary Collar |
“With this new move, the realigned Asia Pacific and Africa (APA) region will be strongly positioned to leverage the synergies of similar market dynamics in the two territories,” said Gary Collar, newly-appointed senior vice-president of AGCO and general manager, APA. “Among these key synergies are the emergence of a growing smallholder farmer segment, product and application similarities, shared consumer finance patterns and growing trade between the two regions.”
Collar has been responsible for all AGCO’s activities in the Asia Pacific region, which includes China, India, the Far East, Australia and New Zealand, since January 2012. He brings wide experience and in-depth knowledge of the African market to his expanded role, having previously held the position as senior vice-president of AGCO and general manager of Europe/Africa/Middle East for 7 years.
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| Nuradin Osman |
The AGCO Africa team will be led by Nuradin Osman, who has been promoted to vice-president and general manager Africa. Osman will report to Collar.
To support the realignment and further boost service to customers and distributors, AGCO said it will open a new regional headquarters in Johannesburg, South Africa, in early 2017 and a new Future Farm in French-speaking West Africa. The initiatives are expected to complement AGCO’s existing parts distribution operation and training center in South Africa and Future Farm in Zambia.
“The new regional structure will build on the significant progress that AGCO has made over recent years and further drive our customer service and business growth in Africa,” said Osman, who has been with AGCO for 12 years and has a solid track record in growing the company’s business in Africa. Prior to this new appointment, he was AGCO director of operations for Africa and the Middle East. In his new role, Osman will have overall responsibility for all AGCO companies and brands in Africa with the exception of AGCO’s manufacturing operation in Algeria, which is subject to a separate joint venture.
“Our core farm equipment brands, which include Challenger, Fendt, GSI, Massey Ferguson and Valtra, are playing a critical role providing sustainable and inclusive mechanization solutions to boost the development of agricultural productivity on the African continent,” Osman said. “Our full line of mechanization, grain storage, seed processing and protein solutions support the complete spectrum of farmers from the emerging sector through to large, professional agribusinesses. As a result of continued investment in product, people, facilities and capacity-building, AGCO’s net sales have grown significantly on the continent in the past six years.”
Net income at AGCO in the third quarter ended Sept. 30 totaled $40 million, equal to 50¢ per share on the common stock, down 40% from $67.1 million, or 77¢ per share, in the same period a year ago. Net sales increased slightly to $1.761 billion from $1.736 billion.
Net sales in AGCO’s Asia/Pacific region, excluding the negative impact of currency translation, increased nearly 19% in the third quarter of 2016 compared to the same period in 2015 due primarily to increased sales in China and Australia. Income from operations improved approximately $29.3 million in the first nine months of 2016, compared with the same period in 2015, due to higher sales and production levels in China.
