Chinese OEMs making US inroads through rentals

Equipment manufacturers with Chinese-based parent companies, including LGMG, LiuGong and Sany, are making inroads into the U.S. market through an emphasis on equipment rentals. 

The American Rental Association projects U.S. equipment rental revenue to rise 3.9% year over year in 2025 to $80.9 billion, including $63.8 billion from construction and industrial rentals and $17.1 billion from general tool rentals, according to an Aug. 8 release. As a result, many OEMs are looking for ways to capitalize on the growing market, with several Chinese OEMs using the opportunity to gain market share. 

Amid LGMG’s North American relaunch, the company, a subsidiary of Chinese OEM Lingong, anticipates small independents, large rental houses and consolidated companies to all contribute to its U.S. market share, reflecting the rental market’s constant evolution, LGMG North America President Craig Paylor told Equipment Finance News. 

“Often, the way to get noticed by the big guys is to succeed with the smaller ones,” he said. “When they see your machines on job sites, they start asking, ‘Who is this?’ That’s how it starts.”

Working with dealers

On the financing side, Taycor Financial launched a dealer-rental financing program with LiuGong North America, the North American subsidiary of LiuGong, boosted by manufacturer-subsidized rates that make financing more affordable, Vu Nguyen, senior vice president of business development at Taycor Financial, told EFN. 

“Now [dealers] can rent it out and still be able to cash flow even more because they’re paying less on the monthly payment due to the subsidized rate that the manufacturer is doing for them,” he said. 

Additionally, Sany America expanded its U.S. presence with the opening of SANY of Pennsauken, a New Jersey dealership offering the full equipment line, rentals, financing and a five-year/5,000-hour warranty, highlighted by Ed’s Rental purchasing a SY16 mini excavator at the launch, according to a July 24 Sany America release. Sany America is the North American subsidiary of Sany Global. 

Changing rental market dynamics 

While several Chinese OEMs are finding opportunities to grow their U.S. market share, other OEMs are seeing a less favorable North American market. 

Volvo CE North American net sales in the second quarter of 2025 declined 12.4% year over year to $12.6 billion, including a 21% decline in construction sales, with the company attributing part of that decline to the “repositioning of rental fleets” amid soft end-customer demand, according to Volvo Group’s July 17 earnings call.  

And Japanese OEM Komatsu reported a 3% decline in North American rentals on a unit basis during its fiscal first quarter 2025, which ended June 30. 

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