Federal's sales increase in quarter

TAIPEI, Taiwan (April 25)—Federal Corp. reported a 16.3-percent increase in sales in the quarter ended March 31, to $26.4 million, based on strong demand both domestically and from export markets. The strong quarterly performance included a single month sales record in March of $10.7 million, a 21.8-percent jump over March 2002, according to President Jamie Ma. The company did not disclose any earnings data. "We are confident that Federal is very well-positioned to again deliver strong results," Ma said in a prepared statement. "We will continue to introduce new products for the market, and we have no doubt that year 2003 will be another year of growth for Federal." To support its growth, Federal has initiated production of Hero- and Maxon-brand passenger tires at its newest plant in Jiang-Xi, China. Federal plans to make incremental investments to expand that facility's production capacity to meet the booming demand in China and elsewhere.