UCIMU forecasts positive trend of the Italian industry

On Jul 7, 2016 139

In a recently concluded meeting of UCIMU-SISTEMI PER PRODURRE an excellent 2015, positive forecasts for 2016 and the growth of investments is also confirmed.

The Meeting coincided with the new appointment of the Association’s positions. Appointed to succeed Luigi Galdabini as the President of UCIMU is Massimo Carboniero. General Manager and co-owner of OMERA, leading company in the sector of metal forming machine tools, located in Chiuppano (Vicenza).

The 2015 balance of the Italian machine tool, robot and automation industry is very positive, registering increases in all main economic indicators: production, consumption, deliveries to the domestic market and exports have grown. The forecasts for 2016 are also positive.

As a consequence, the Italian industry strengthened its fourth position in the world ranking of manufacturers and confirmed its third place in the ranking of exporters.

In particular, in 2015, production increased by 7.8% and reached 5,217 million euro. This outcome was determined by the positive trend of the manufacturers’ deliveries, – gone up by 15.3%, to 1,830 million euro – as well as by the recovery of exports, grown again after two years of regression, to 3,387 million euro, i.e. 4.1% more compared to 2014.

The most evident and reassuring figure concerns Italian consumption, which reported a strong upturn for the second consecutive year, thus confirming the recovery of investments in production systems also in Italy. With a 22.3 increase, consumption achieved 3,348 million euro.

This is in short the picture of 2015 illustrated by the President Luigi Galdabini this morning, on the occasion of the Annual Members’ Meeting of UCIMU-SISTEMI PER PRODURRE, which was also attended by the economists Alberto Quadrio Curzio and Marco Fortis, called to discuss the topic “Reforms, Recovery, Relaunch – Europe and Italy.”

The positive trend of the Italian industry of the sector will also continue in 2016, as emerged from the forecast data processed by the Studies Dept. of UCIMU. In particular, in 2016, production will rise by 5.3% to 5,495 million euro. Consumption will reach 3,535 million euro, i.e. 5.6% more compared to the previous year, driving both the manufacturers’ deliveries, expected to grow by 3.6% to 1,895 million, and imports (+8%).

Exports will grow by 6.3% to 3,600 million, again attaining the record levels recorded by the sector. The export/production ratio, decreased in 2014, because of the Italian demand recovery, will attain 65.5%.

With reference to the destination markets for the “Made in Italy” of the sector, in 2015 the United States resulted to be the first market, followed by Germany, China, France, Russia, Poland and the United Kingdom. The latest available survey regarding the period January-March 2016, shows Germany as the leader of the ranking of the destination areas (+11.9%), followed by the United States (+13.6%), China (-20.1%), France (+40.4%), Poland (+34.7%) and Mexico (+56.4%).

Luigi Galdabini, President of UCIMU, pointed out: “The 2015 data processed by the Studies Dept. of UCIMU certainly show a positive picture of the Italian machine tool industry. The export growth, added to the recovery of domestic consumption, surely makes up an excellent outcome, not only for the economic return, but also and especially because this trend proves that today our enterprises are able to produce at least as much as they produced before the recession.”

“However, this doesn’t mean that all problems are over. Beyond the instability conditions of the situation in which we are working, what should worry us more is the situation of the Italian manufacturing industry, whose competitiveness has strongly stepped back in the last few years due to the recession.”

“According to the results from the last survey conducted by UCIMU on the total machinery installed in the Italian metal mechanic industries, in 2014 the average age of the production systems resulted to be almost 13 years, the worst outcome ever recorded in the last forty years.”

“The recovery of Italian consumption that we have been experiencing since last year is positive, but it is surely not enough to regain the ground lost in the last period. For this reason – went on Galdabini – besides the New Sabatini Law – which from May 2014 to May 2016 enabled investments (not only in machine tools) for a value of 3.5 billion, – it is necessary to implement new appropriate provisions, capable of supporting domestic demand”.

“In particular, the provision of Super Depreciation, already in force since last October, should be confirmed also for the year 2017, as it happened in France, so that it can become a semi-structural provision to “accompany” the country in this phase of economic reconstruction”.

“Finally, – concluded the President of UCIMU – the adoption of an incentive programme would be necessary to encourage the voluntary replacement of obsolete machinery installed in Italy, so that machines and factories can meet the new requirements of productivity, digitalisation, energy saving and compliance with the EU regulations concerning safety at the workplace”.

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