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Manufacturing orders, contracts, financial reports
News Release from: UCIMU
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 21 January 2005
Italian machine tool exports rise, home
use drops
Orders taken by Italian machine tool manufacturers in the fourth quarter 2004 increased by 15.9% compared with 2003, contrasting with decrease in domestic orders.
Orders taken by Italian machine tool manufacturers in the fourth quarter 2004 increased by 15.9% compared with 2003, contrasting with decrease in domestic orders Alberto Tacchella, president of UCIMU-Sistemi per Produrre had this to say: "The continuing stagnation on the domestic market is a source of concern
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 30 Mar 2005 at 8.00am (UK)
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Government measures aimed at stimulating investments and increasing competition must be implemented in the entire national industry".
Based on the statistics processed by the Studies Dept.
of UCIMU-Sistemi per Produrre, the Italian machine tools, robotics and automation manufacturers association, orders taken by Italian machine tool manufacturers in the fourth quarter 2004 increased by 15.9% compared with the same period in 2003, settling out at an index value of 88.2 (base 2000=100).
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The aggregate result was determined by the positive performance of orders taken on the international markets, which was contrasted by the decrease in orders taken on the domestic market.
After reporting quite a substantial decrease in the fourth quarter 2003, orders on the domestic market decreased further in 2004, falling by 3.5% for an absolute index value of 72.4.
By contrast, the foreign market reported positive data for the past three quarters and posted an additional increase of 37.1%, which raised the absolute index value to 103.9, above the base value of the year.
On an annual basis, the aggregate order index in 2004 reported an increase of 12.7%, despite maintaining a fairly low average index value (71.5).
Growth in the foreign orders (up 24.2% year on year) made a significant contribution to the final results, while the orders taken on the domestic market have remained essentially unchanged year on year (0.7%).
With reference to the figures, Alberto Tacchella, chairman of UCIMU-Sistemi per Produrre, observed that: "yet again, sector trends demonstrate the sharp divergence between foreign demand, where the markets seem to reflect the economic recovery, and worrisome results on the domestic market.
The positive results reported on the traditional foreign buying markets, such as Germany and Spain, and the emerging markets including China, Russia and Turkey, corroborate yet again the positive reputation for quality that Italian products enjoy.
On the domestic market, however, Italy seems to be unable to keep up the pace of recovery: after two quarters of positive results on the domestic market, the fourth quarter 2004 has reported an unexpected and disappointing setback." "This continuing stagnation in Italy is a source of concern and it is important to rapidly implement across the board measures aimed at stimulating recovery and competition in the industry.
Unfortunately - continued Tacchella - the government measures introduced by the Financial Law 2005 are not enough, although the adjustments to the IRAP tax represent a step in the right direction.
Hopefully, the tax will soon be eliminated altogether.
What the sector and the entire industrial system need to bring about an economic resurgence is a government policy tool for industry that can stimulate renewed investment activity.
We appeal to the government authorities to adopt a looser, more liberal policy regarding depreciation allowances, a measure that could ensure a rapid renewal of the machinery in small businesses that would bring both improvements to the production processes as well as development and expansion of the production equipment manufacturing industry".
The president of UCIMU-Sistemi per Produrre also underscored the importance of taking decisive action in two strategic areas to help maintain competition: innovation and globalization.
"To keep apace with our foreign competitors and to protect the leadership status that the Italian machine tool, robotics and automation industry has successfully maintained over the years - remarked Tacchella - it would be best for companies having common objectives to form consortia in order to overcome the limits related to the small size of Italian companies, an obstacle to investments in research and development, and be more visible on the foreign markets.
To achieve this, we also look forward to seeing an increase in Private Equity funds that can sustain companies in their growth and expansion processes, providing the financing for the necessary investments.".
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