The German Machine Tool Builders' Association (VDW) has projected year-on-year growth of five percent for the current year for production in the German machine tool industry.
According to VDW, in 2011 the sector's turnover totalled €13.1 billion. "At 33 percent, this is the highest growth ever recorded", said Martin Kapp, chairman of VDW. Meanwhile, German machine tool exports in 2011 reached €8.1 billion, increasing 33 percent year on year. The association said that China is still the largest market for German machine tools, followed by the US.
The association also predicts that there will be stronger growth in industrial production output, and thus above all in capital investments from the major customer sectors for the machine tool industry. The prime mover continues to be Asia, with Thailand, China, Taiwan, Japan and India as the front-runners. In Germany, the business climate index is indicating rising levels of confidence for the industrial sector, the major customer groupings of the machine tool industry, and the sector itself.
Mr. Kapp added that, for demand in particular, growth can no longer be anticipated for 2012, since there is still quite a bit of uncertainty due to macroeconomic risks like the eurozone debt crisis or turbulences in the financial markets.