The global construction equipment market contracted again during 2016, but this did not stop JCB from growing its earnings by more than 34%. The launch of the AgriPro range of Loadalls as well as the new 8000 Series Fastracs, helped drive sales in the agricultural sector, and overall the Staffordshire-based machinery maker saw 2016 sales turnover rose by nearly 12% to £2.62 billion (2015: £2.34 billion). Earnings on an EBITDA basis were £287 million (2015: £214 million), and machine sales increased to over 66,000 (2015: 59,844). JCB CEO Graeme Macdonald said the company’s strong performance was against some economic headwinds which saw the global construction equipment market shrink. “Some markets grew, such as India which rose by almost 40%,” he said, “while others fell, including Brazil which was down by more than 40%. The UK market contracted by 5% in 2016 but the good news is that, after a difficult few years, European markets grew strongly and were up by more than 10% last year.”