Here’s What Caterpillar Just Told Us About the Economy (and It’s Not Good)
Amazon and Apple made headlines on Thursday after reporting their first-quarter 2022 earnings — which largely overshadowed Caterpillar’s (CAT 0.78%) earnings report. However, industrial bellwether Caterpillar’s results can provide insight into the pulse of the global economy, especially considering that over half of Caterpillar’s sales come from outside of North America.
Here’s what Caterpillar just told us about the economy and what it could mean for your investment portfolio, even if you aren’t interested in Caterpillar stock specifically.
Image source: Getty Images.
Margins are under pressure
Caterpillar is optimistic that price increases will offset higher costs due to inflation. But it was clear that supply-chain constraints are far from over and that these challenges are impacting its profitability.
Segment
Q1 2022
Q1 2021
Year-Over-Year Change
Construction Industries Revenue
$6.1…
