Italian manufacturers: positive 2021 and encouraging outlook for 2022, although not without some uncertainty

With outcomes in some cases exceeding the forecast year-end results, the Italian industry of plastics and rubber processing machinery, equipment, and moulds closed the year 2021 with double-digit growth in production (+14%, with value exceeding pre-pandemic level) and equally encouraging results in foreign trade.

According to data from the Mecs-Amaplast Statistical Studies Centre (the national trade association in Confindustria) combined with Istat data, the strongly positive final balance was driven in particular by excellent performance in the domestic market, close to +30% over 2020.

The share of exports is in line with previous years and close to 70% of production. Foreign sales also recorded a significant rebound (+9%) while not making it past the peak of 3 billion euros, which was abundantly exceeded in the three years preceding the crisis.

Italian market of machinery, equipment and moulds for plastics and rubber
(million euros)

 

2020

2021

∆% 2021/2020

Production

3,900

4,450

14.1

Export

2,730

2,980

9.2

Import

770

1,050

36.4

Domestic market

1,940

2,520

29.9

Trade balance

+1,960

+1,930

-1.5

The main destination region is Europe, albeit with a slight decrease with respect to 2020. On the other hand, Italian companies in the sector benefited from transatlantic sales, a significant portion in North America, where the strongly growing US economy expressed healthy demand, albeit with some contradictions. In parallel, strong increases in supply to priority markets such as China and India have strengthened the importance of the Asian continent.

Destination areas of the Italian plastics and rubber machinery,
equipment and moulds exports (%)

 

2020

2021

Europe (UE)

58.6 (45.3)

57.4 (44.8)

North America/USMCA

14.5

16.8

Asia/Oceania

16.5

15.8

Africa

5.5

5.1

Central/South America

4.9

4.9

Top ten destination countries of the Italian plastics and rubber machinery,
equipment and moulds exports (000 euros - 2021 ranking)

Countries

2020

% out

of total

Countries

2021

% out

of total

∆ % 21/20

Germany

343,723

12.6

Germany

376,484

12.6

9.5

United States

269,788

9.9

United States

359,032

12.1

33.1

China

143,938

5.3

China

160,565

5.4

11.5

France

151,250

5.5

France

157,107

5.3

3.9

Poland

153,010

5.6

Poland

134,876

4.5

-11.8