Exhibit 99.1

Hardinge Inc. One Hardinge Drive, Elmira, N.Y. 14902

Hardinge Inc. Reports Net Income Grows 69% on
11% Increase in Sales for Fourth Quarter 2011

·                  Fourth quarter sales up 11% to $91.0 million on strength of sales to North American market; 2011 sales up 33% reflecting rapid recovery of machine tool market

·                  Gross margin expanded 130 and 280 basis points in the fourth quarter and full-year period, respectively

·                  Fourth quarter earnings per diluted share of $0.28; Full-year earnings per diluted share of $1.02

ELMIRA, N.Y., February 16, 2012 — Hardinge Inc. (NASDAQ: HDNG), a leading international provider of advanced metal-cutting solutions, reported financial results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2011.

Net sales (“sales”) were $91.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2011, up $9.0 million, or 11%, over sales of $82.0 million in the prior year’s fourth quarter.  Foreign currency translation had approximately $2.4 million favorable effect on sales in the quarter compared with the prior year.  When compared with the 2011 third quarter, sales were up $0.6 million, or 1%, for the 2011 fourth quarter.  Net income for the fourth quarter was up measurably to $3.2 million, or $0.28 per diluted share, a $1.3 million increase from $1.9 million, or $0.17 per diluted share, in the prior-year period.  Sequentially, net income declined from $4.3 million, or $0.36 per diluted share, primarily as a result of lower gross profits.

Richard Simons, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “Significant sales growth continued into the fourth quarter in North America, illustrating both the effectiveness of our strategic actions to deepen and broaden domestic distribution channels and the strengthening of the U.S. industrial economy.  Our restructuring efforts over the last several years, along with our strong cost discipline, have strengthened our sustained earnings power.”

For the year, 2011 sales grew 33%, or $84.6 million, to $341.6 million from $257.0 million in 2010, as the Company recognized strong sales throughout its markets.  Foreign currency translation had approximately $20.9 million favorable effect on sales for the year.  Net income in 2011 was $12.0 million, or $1.02 per diluted share, compared with a net loss of $5.2 million, or ($0.46) per diluted share, in 2010.

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Diversified Markets Create Balance and Drive Growth

Sales by Region

North American sales, which represented 35% of total sales in the fourth quarter of 2011, more than doubled when compared with the fourth quarter of 2010.  Sales in Europe and Asia & Other declined in the quarter when compared with the prior year period, reflecting the slowing in the European industrial economy and leveling of activity in China.  Approximately $8 million in sales to Asia & Other in the 2010 fourth quarter were related to orders from a China-based supplier to the consumer electronics industry.

For the year, sales to North America, which had the strongest regional growth, were up $31.6 million to $90.0 million.  Sales to Europe were up $30.4 million, or 41%, while sales to Asia & Other grew $22.6 million to $146.7 million.  Included in sales to Asia & Other in 2010 and 2011 were approximately $29 million and $15 million, respectively, related to the orders from a China-based supplier to the consumer electronics industry.  The Company believes that its geographic diversity helps to offset economic impacts that can vary from region to region around the world.

Approximately 23% of sales in both the fourth quarter and full year 2011 were from parts and service, which is representative of the typical mix of machine tools and repair parts/service given the large installed base of Hardinge brands around the world.

Fluctuations in Hardinge’s sales in total and among geographic locations and industries can vary from quarter-to-quarter based on the timing and magnitude of orders and projects.  Hardinge does not believe that such quarter-to-quarter fluctuations are indicative of business trends, which the Company believes are more apparent on a trailing twelve-month basis.

Leverage Realized on Higher Sales

Gross profit was $23.1 million, or 25.4% of sales, in the 2011 fourth quarter compared with $19.7 million, or 24.1% of sales, in the same period of the prior year.  When compared with the 2011 third quarter gross margin of 28.3%, gross margin was negatively impacted approximately 120 basis points as a result of year-end inventory adjustments and an additional 110 basis points due to product and geographic mix.  For the year, gross profit in 2011 was $91 million, or 26.6% of sales, compared with $61.3 million, or 23.8% of sales, in the prior fiscal year as a result of the leverage gained on higher sales volume.

Selling, general and administrative (“SG&A”) expenses in the 2011 fourth quarter were $19.0 million compared with $16.5 million in the prior year’s fourth quarter.  The increase was primarily due to commissions on higher sales, performance-based compensation increases and approximately $0.4 million associated with foreign currency exchange.  As a percent of sales, SG&A was 20.9% in the 2011 fourth quarter, up from 20.1% in the prior year’s fourth quarter.  For the year, SG&A expenses increased 12%, or $7.9 million, to $73.6 million compared with

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$65.7 million in 2010; however, as a percent of sales, SG&A was down to 21.5% of sales in 2011 compared with 25.5% in the prior year, reflecting the Company’s emphasis on cost discipline.

Income from operations in the fourth quarter of 2011 was $3.6 million, up 12% over $3.3 million in the prior year’s fourth quarter.  As a percent of sales, income from operations remained unchanged at 4.0%.  For the year, income from operations was $16.6 million, or 4.9% of sales, compared with a loss from operations of $2.7 million in the prior year.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) grew 11% to $5.5 million in the 2011 fourth quarter compared with $4.9 million in the same period of the prior year.  2011 EBITDA was $24.3 million, sharply improved over EBITDA of $4.3 million in the prior fiscal year.  The Company believes that, when used in conjunction with GAAP measures, EBITDA, which is a non-GAAP measure, helps in the understanding of operating performance.  (See the attached table for a Reconciliation of Net Income (Loss) to EBITDA and other important information regarding Hardinge’s use and presentation of EBITDA).

Solid Balance Sheet Provides Financial Flexibility for Growth Strategy

Cash and cash equivalents at December 31, 2011 were $21.7 million compared with $30.9 million at December 31, 2010.  During 2011, Hardinge invested $17.2 million in the expansion of its manufacturing operations in China and Switzerland to provide additional capacity for growth and productivity enhancements.  Total capital expenditures in 2011 were $19.2 million.  Capital expenditures in fiscal 2012 are expected to be approximately $7 million to $8 million, with approximately $3 million to $4 million related to maintenance capital spend.  The remainder is planned for completion of the China and Switzerland projects.

Mr. Simons noted, “The significant capital used for expanding our capacity and improving our operations were critical, strategic investments in our future and we believe will better enable us to capitalize on the opportunities we see in the expanding machine tool market.  We have more than doubled our manufacturing capacity in China in order to better serve the Asian market as its consumption of machine tools is expected to grow at a double digit compounded rate for the next few years.  As well, Kellenberger, our operation in Switzerland, is among the top suppliers of high-precision cylindrical grinding machines in the world and we expect the enhancements we have made in that operation will facilitate our capture of a greater share of that highly specialized market.”

Trend in Net Orders (“Orders”) Vary by Region

Orders by Region

Orders during the fourth quarter of 2011 were $69.5 million, net of approximately $8.5 million in cancellations of orders that had been received in the first half of 2011.  Orders for the quarter were down 16% compared with orders in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010.  For 2011, total orders

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received were $372.9 million, up 26% over orders received in 2010.  Included in orders in 2010 was $35.2 million associated with the China-based supplier to the consumer electronics industry.  Hardinge received an additional $12.5 million in orders from the same company in 2011.  Strong activity in the North American markets reflected the strengthening of the U.S. industrial economy and the effectiveness of Hardinge’s restructured channels to market.

Mr. Simons concluded, “During the latter half of 2010 and the first half of 2011, the machine tool industry realized an extremely exaggerated recovery.  We saw rapid expansion of sales as early recovery demand was strong and customers reacted to the sudden constraints on the machine tool supply chain due to the significant demand.  Given this and the macro-economic pressures that exist, we believe the rate of growth will be tempered during the first half of the year in 2012, but should still be strong and more representative of long-term industry fundamentals.

“When final numbers are published, it is expected that worldwide machine tool consumption in 2011 will have surpassed its 2008 historic peak, and industry analysts estimate that by 2014 Asia’s consumption of machine tools alone will surpass the world’s historic peak consumption.  We believe our high quality brands and continually expanding channels to market will enable us to fully capitalize on the industry’s expansion.”

Webcast and Conference Call

Hardinge will host a conference call and webcast today at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time.  During the conference call and webcast, Richard Simons, Chairman, President and CEO, and Edward Gaio, Vice President and CFO, will review the financial and operating results for the quarter and full year, as well as the Company’s strategy and outlook.  A question and answer session will follow the formal discussion.  Their review will be accompanied by a slide presentation which will be available on Hardinge’s website at www.hardinge.com.

The conference call can be accessed by dialing (201) 689-8560.  The listen-only audio webcast can be monitored at www.hardinge.com.

A telephonic replay will be available from 2:00 p.m. ET the day of the call through Thursday, February 23, 2012.  To listen to the archived call, dial (858) 384-5517 and enter conference ID number 386498.  Alternatively, an archive of the webcast will be available on the Company’s website at www.hardinge.com.  A transcript will also be posted to the website, once available.

About Hardinge

Hardinge is a global designer, manufacturer and distributor of machine tools, specializing in SUPER-PRECISION® and precision CNC Lathes, high performance Machining Centers, high-end cylindrical and jig Grinding Machines, and technologically advanced Workholding & Rotary Products. The Company’s products are distributed to most of the industrialized markets around the world with approximately 75% of its sales outside of North America.  Hardinge has a very diverse international customer base and serves a wide variety of end-user markets.  This customer base includes metalworking manufacturers which make parts for a variety of industries, as well as a wide range of end users in the aerospace, agricultural, transportation, basic consumer goods, communications and electronics, construction, defense, energy, pharmaceutical and medical equipment, and recreation industries, among others.  The Company has manufacturing operations in Switzerland, Taiwan, the United States, China and the United Kingdom. Hardinge’s common stock trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol, “HDNG.”

For more information, please visit http://www.hardinge.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This news release contains forward-looking statements (within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as

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amended). Such statements are based on management’s current expectations that involve risks and uncertainties. Any statements that are not statements of historical fact or that are about future events may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. For example, words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “estimates,” “predicts,” “potential,” “continue,” “strategy,” “believes,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “expects,” “intends,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. The Company’s actual results or outcomes and the timing of certain events may differ significantly from those discussed in any forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

FINANCIAL TABLES FOLLOW.

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HARDINGE INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(in thousands except per share data)

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HARDINGE INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(in thousands except share and per share data)

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HARDINGE INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(in thousands)

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HARDINGE INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

Reconciliation of Net Income (Loss) to EBITDA

(in thousands)

The following table provides a reconciliation of the Company’s reported net income (loss) to EBITDA for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2011 and 2010, respectively:

(1)          EBITDA, a non-GAAP financial measure, is defined as earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. EBITDA is used by management to internally measure our operating and management performance and by investors as a supplemental financial measure to evaluate the performance of our business that, when viewed with our GAAP results and the accompanying reconciliation, we believe provides additional information that is useful to gain an understanding of the factors and trends affecting our business.

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