Plastics machinery growth strongest in China, study says
By David Eldridge
PLASTICS & RUBBER WEEKLY EDITOR
CLEVELAND, OHIO (November 4, 2008) – U.S. research firm Freedonia Group is forecasting a 4.7 percent annual rise in global demand for plastics processing machinery, taking the market value to
US$24.9 billion (170.3 billion yuan) in 2012. In 2007, demand stood at US$19.8 billion (150.8 billion yuan), it estimated.
China is expected to increase plastics processing equipment demand by more than US$1.6 billion (10.9 billion yuan) from 2007 to 2012. By then, China will account for nearly one-quarter of the global
market.
The Asia-Pacific market, including China, is expected to grow at a 5.5 percent annual rate from US$8.99 billion (68.5 billion yuan) in 2007 to $11.8 billion (80.7 billion yuan) in 2012. Much slower
market growth is predicted for the North American and European markets.
Plastics processing machinery demand in North America was US$3 billion (22.9 billion yuan) in 2007 and will rise by 2.8 percent per year to US$3.45 billion (23.5 billion yuan) in 2012, according to
Freedonia.
In Europe, demand will increase at only 2.2 percent per year from US$4.16 billion (31.7 billion yuan) in 2007 to US$4.64 billion (31.7 billion yuan) in 2012.
Cleveland-based Freedonia expects extrusion equipment to gain the most of all the major product groups.
Plastics & Rubber Weekly is a London-based sister publication to Plastics News.
Plastics News' extensive coverage of NPE2009, North America's largest plastics trade show, included 17 news videos
shot on-site in Chicago. View the English-language clips here.
