Opposite signals

A comparison of the import-export statistics for the first quarter of 2010 of the 8 main manufacturers/exporters of plastics and rubber machinery shows a sharp difference between those countries that provide high-level technologies and those that offer standard machines.
As a matter of fact, only China and Taiwan recorded a positive result - even remarkable - with respect to the first quarter of 2009, either at import or export. Moreover, in both countries injection moulding machines boosted the growing trend. In detail, total Chinese imports grew by 15% (with a considerable increase of injection moulding machines, mainly supplied by Japan) and exports by 23% (with improved sales to Brazil, Turkey and Iran). Taiwan closed the January-March period with a 9% increase in imports (again in this case Japan provided ¾ of the injection moulding machines) and +33% in exports.
On the other hand, as far as the European countries, the United States and Japan are concerned, the announced recovery has not been confirmed yet by their import-export data. In fact, all of them reported decreasing results in both directions, though somewhat improved with respect to the previous quarters: Italy -10% imports and -7% exports, Germany -14% and -13% respectively, France -14% and -18%, Switzerland -5% and -28%, United States -12% and -5%, Japan -13% and -11%.