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[July 2004]
Italian Ceramic Plant & Machinery Sales Survey
Acimac (the Association of Italian Ceramic Plant and Machinery Manufacturers) has presented the figures for the industry's performance in 2003 that emerged from the association's 12th Annual Statistical Survey.
After closures, setting up of new companies, mergers and takeovers, the number of Italian ceramic machinery manufacturers operating in 2003 totalled 173 - exactly the same number as in 2002.
The survey confirmed the negative forecasts made in December 2003. The sector closed 2003 with a total turnover of €1.4024 billion, a fall of €50 million (3.4%) from 2002. The cause of the sector's fresh downturn was the sharp fall in sales of ceramic machinery in the Italian market itself, down from €484 million to €428.5 million, a decrease of 11.5%.
On the other hand, exports remained substantially stable at 2002 levels, rising marginally (0.6%) from €968.5 million up to €974 million. The export percentage therefore rose from 66.7% to 69.4%.
The year 2003 confirmed the now well established breakdown of machinery sales to the six different client sectors, namely manufacturers of ceramic tiles (82.5% of the sector's total turnover), heavy clay products (8.8%), sanitaryware (4.7%), tableware (2.7%), refractories and various ceramic products (respectively 0.9% and 0.6%).
The export sales trend is continuing to change. EU sales were down again - for the third year running - by a sharp 22.5%. Middle East sales, on the other hand, continued to rise strongly, up 18% this time with a particularly strong performance in Iran where the ceramic industry has doubled tile production over the past five years.
Asia (excluding China) turned round a decrease from 2001/2002 to an increase 2002/2003 of 8.7%.
There was a fall - quite substantial at 15.4% - in demand from Eastern Europe, but Acimac pointed out that this was perfectly natural, coming as it did after five years of steady growth in investments in the ceramic industry, particularly in Russia and Poland, two countries that have seen a sharp rise in tile production.
The growth trend reported in 2002 was also confirmed in Africa, up 24.2%, and in the NAFTA area of North America, up 33.9%. In Africa, demand originates essentially from the Maghreb countries plus South Africa, while it is Mexico that has made the greatest investments in production plant in the NAFTA region.
Lastly, sales decreased slightly with respect to the previous year in China (down 8.9% from €85.5 million to €81.3 million) and remained virtually unchanged in South America (up 1.3% from €79.3 million to €80.3 million).
ENDS