Analysis: Import and Export Situation of Machine Tool Industry

In 2010, the import and export volume of the machine tool industry was US$21.563 billion, a year-on-year increase of 57.6%. Of which, 15.927 billion U.S. dollars were imported, an increase of 66.73% year-on-year; exports were 5.636 billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 36.49% year-on-year. The import and export deficit was 102.91 billion U.S. dollars. The import of metal processing machine tools was 97,800 sets, with the amount of US$9.367 billion, an increase of 59.78% year-on-year; the exports of 4,385,500 sets (including grinders, bench drills, polishing machines, etc.) were US$1.768 billion, a year-on-year increase of 31.07%. Among them, CNC machine tools imported 19,495 sets, amounting to US$3.69 billion, an increase of 35.02% year-on-year; exports to 17,561 units, amounting to US$481 million, an increase of 63.91% year-on-year; imported 30,637 machining centers, US$3,407 million, a year-on-year increase of 11,8.51%; exports to 1,072 Taiwan, the amount of 62.255 million US dollars, an increase of 14.08%.

In 2010, the import and export of metalworking machine tools have three notable features:

First, the industry's imports have grown at a rapid rate, hitting a record high; second, although the industry’s exports have grown faster than last year, it has not yet reached the level of the same period when the financial crisis occurred in 2008. It is a recovery growth and has not yet entered new growth. Period; third is the important changes in the structure of import and export products. The average unit prices for imports and exports of CNC machine tools and machining centers have generally declined, and the structure of export products has not improved, and the gap has widened. The structure of demand for imported products has undergone major changes, and imports of high-end, heavy-duty, and expensive machine tools have decreased significantly.

Import and Export Situation of Machine Tool Industry in 2011 According to customs statistics, the import and export of the machine tool industry from January to October 2011 was US$23.45 billion, an increase of 39.45% over the same period of 2010 (hereinafter referred to as the year-on-year basis). Among them, the import value of US$17.488 billion was up 42% year-on-year, and the export was US$5.962 billion, up 32.48% year-on-year. The import and export deficit was 11.526 billion U.S. dollars, a deficit of 7.815 billion U.S. dollars over the same period of 2010, an increase of 3.711 billion U.S. dollars (according to the statistics of China Machinery Industry Federation, the same below).

1: Imports grew at a rapid rate. From the second quarter, the growth rate gradually slowed down. The import volume of the industry from January to October 2011 was US$17.48 billion, which was higher than the highest historically from January to October 2010, which was US$123.16 billion, and US$5.172 billion more. The momentum of growth is unprecedented. Metal processing machine tools imported 94,500 sets, amounting to 10.08 billion US dollars, an increase of 48.84%. Among them, the processing center imported 34,400 units, the amount of 3.944 billion US dollars, an increase of 53.55%; CNC machine tools imported 21,000 units, the amount of 4.383 billion US dollars, an increase of 51.61%.

In a year, the import volume of processing centers and CNC machine tools increased by a total of 1.375 billion U.S. dollars and 1.492 billion U.S. dollars, respectively, compared to the same period of 2010, which is rare.

The industry’s import growth slowed down from the second quarter month by month. In the first quarter, cumulative imports increased by 73.87% year-on-year, cumulative imports increased by 60.03% in the first half of the year, cumulative imports increased by 45.99% in the third quarter, and cumulative imports increased by 42% from January to October. Although the rate of decline is faster, it is still growing rapidly.

2: Exports grew rapidly, and the growth rate was relatively stable. The export value of the entire industry from January to October 2011 was 5.962 billion U.S. dollars, which was higher than the highest historical figure of 4.906 billion U.S. dollars in the same period of the same period in 2008, and even more was 1.056 billion U.S. dollars. The situation is very good. The export of metal processing machine tools was 3.7351 million units (including bench drills, grinders, etc.), amounting to 1.872 billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 34.21% year-on-year. Among them, the processing center exported 2040 sets, amounting to US$122 million, an increase of 143.07% year-on-year, representing a high-speed growth trend; CNC machine tools exported 15,365 units, amounting to US$498 million, an increase of 34.9% year-on-year. The rapid growth of export of processing centers has opened up a new phase for the export of the machine tool industry, which requires further diversification to open up potential markets. Since 2011, the growth rate of exports across the industry has been relatively stable and has remained at around 32%, with little ups and downs.