It may seem like it was a long time coming, but there are hints from the machine tool industry that an economic rebound is on the horizon.
Modern Machine Shop has released the results of the 2021 World Machine Tool Survey (WMTS). Cautiously optimistic. Encouraged. Just shy of a happy dance. These descriptors may apply to you after reviewing results of the 2021 World Machine Tool Survey.
What’s up? Machine tool industry economic indicators are. Not just one. Not one-half of them. Rather, all four areas measured by WMTS. Production, consumption, imports, and exports, show growth from 2020 to 2021.
It may seem like it was a long time coming, but there are hints from the machine tool industry that an economic rebound is on the horizon. The broader path to recovery may have been interrupted, however, by developments around the world since the close of 2021. In any case, the 2021 WMTS results give reason to hope that putting the worst of Covid-19 in the rear-view mirror, accompanied by sustained positive trends in manufacturing, are very real possibilities in the near future.
As for specifics, overall machine tool consumption increased from $70 billion in 2020 to $80 billion in 2021, while production increased from $73 billion to $85 billion on the way to recovery from dips in 2020.
Global production exceeded consumption by $5 billion. This difference may be, at least in part, a function of machine tool builders trying to get out in front of supply chain issues. The resulting surplus of machine tools may put downward pressure on prices, but global supply chain disruptions themselves are likely to put upward pressure on machine tool prices. Will one force be stronger than the other? Might they cancel each other out? Only time will tell in the absence of a crystal ball.
Most participating countries saw increases on all measured indicators. Recovery rates vary by country, with the United States and China serving up the most evidence. For example, 2021 marks the highest US production total since 1998 and second highest since 1981, as well as the largest year-over-year increase for the US in reported history. China’s production increased $5 billion from 2020 to 2021, the biggest single year increase in 10 years.
Production updates
The six largest producers – China, Germany, Italy, Japan, South Korea and the United States – remain unchanged from 2020, with some jockeying of position. US production reached $7.5 billion in 2021, thanks to a $2 billion increase from 2020. Japan unseated Germany’s number two position, a function of Japan’s increased production combined with Germany’s slight decrease. Italy’s production was up, but the US was up more, enabling the US to swap positions and assume the number four spot.
Consumption updates
The six largest producers are also the six largest consumers in 2021. China, US and Germany, in that order, maintained ranks on consumption from 2020 to 2021.
About the survey
This is the 54th edition of an independent, annual survey that collects statistics from machine tool consuming and producing countries and compares them in real US dollars. It is conducted by Gardner Intelligence, the research department of Gardner Business Media Inc.
Sources of data
Contributors include the 15-member CECIMO consortium and AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology. For countries that do not report total imports and exports, data from the International Trade Centre (ITC) are used. ITC data are also used to report imports and exports at the machine tool category level for all countries. Data presented in the World Machine Tool Survey are solicited for metal cutting machines (codes 8456-8461 under the Harmonised Tariff System) and for metal forming machines (8462-8463), and are solicited for complete machines only, not including parts or rebuilt machines.
For further details visit https://www.gardnerintelligence.com/report/world-machine-tool