Arrow Electronics confirmed the fightback today when it reported record first quarter sales of $4.24bn, up from $3.42bn in the comparable quarter of 2009. Profit rocketed to $87m from $26.7m in the same quarter last year. Restructuring and other costs have impacted the comparability of the numbers. Excluding these costs profit this year would have been $92.6m against $42.8m last year.
Whatever some say. Either way these are heady numbers. Arrow's components business lead the charge posting sales of $3.13bn, up 33 per cent year on year. A significant milestone of $1bn sales in the Asia/Pacific business was recorded. Arrow's enterprise computing solutions business was up 3 per cent with sales of $1.11bn.
"The positive momentum we built during the fourth quarter of 2009 has accelerated into 2010 driving us to a first quarter record level of sales. Our very strong results exceeded our expectations for both sales and earnings per share," said Michael J. Long, chairman, president, and chief executive officer. "Operating income and return on invested capital almost doubled year over year, while our return on invested capital reached 12.1%."
Arrow's sparkling results follow a similar performance from Avnet, where third quarter sales rose to $4.76bn, an increase of 25.5 per cent year on year, and profit was up the small matter of 98 per cent to $174.6m from $88.2m.
Avnet's components business sales rose 38 per cent year on year to $2.88bn and profit up to $144.2m from $59.6m. Encouragingly EMEA sales were up 27 per cent.
These numbers from the industry's two heavy hitters confirm the revival is well and truly with us. Regions which have been suffering the worst of the recession, notably Europe, have bounced back.
And as AFDEC confirmed last week the UK and Ireland market has also started the long march back. Here sales were up 27.2 per cent in March compared to February, and 25.8 per cent up year on year.
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