Exports of Taiwan-made Machine Tools Amount to US$4 B. in 2011

Taipei, March 14, 2012 (CENS)--Taiwan exported US$4 billion of machine tools in 2011, up 35.1% year-on-year, according to customs-cleared statistics compiled by the Taiwan Machine Tool Foundation (TMTF).

Exports of metal-cutting machine tools amounted to US$3.287 billion, up 41% year-on-year and that for metal-forming machine tools came to US$712.64 million, up 13.1%.

Annualized export growth of machining centers, lathes and grinding machines reached 48.8%, 52.7% and 43.2% in 2011, respectively. Exports of presses and shearing machines grew 13.5% year-on-year in 2011 and that for other metal-forming machines was up 11.6%.

China and Hong Kong together remained the largest outlet by absorbing US$1.545 billion of Taiwan-made machine tools in 2011, up 13.5% year-on-year and accounting for 38.6% of the total exports. The second place went to the U.S. with US$353.87 million, up 117.5% and commanding 8.8%. Turkey stood at third place with US$200.14 million, up 73.2% and commanding 5%.

Other major outlets, in descending orders, were Thailand, Germany, India, Brazil, Malaysia, the Netherlands, South Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam, United Kingdom, Japan and Russia.

The TMTF's tallies also show that Taiwan imported US$828.91 million of machine tools in 2011, up 17.8% year-on-year, of which metal-cutting machine tools came to US$714.98 million, up 24.9%, metal-forming machine tools amounted to US$139.3 million, down 13.2%.

Japan was the island's largest supplier by exporting US$507.64 million of machine tools to Taiwan in 2011, up 21.1% year-on-year and accounting for 61.2% of the total imports. Switzerland stood at second place with US$71.12 million, up a whopping 51.4% and commanding 8.6%. The third place went to Germany with US$70.25 million, up 14.2% and commanding 8.5%.

TMTF CEO C.C. Wang noted the biggest problems facing domestic machine-tool manufacturers in the months to come will be the price volatility of cast iron, the instability for the supply of key components, and the appreciation of New Taiwan dollars against the greenback. In addition, the implementation of the free trade agreement (FTA) between South Korea and the U.S. on March 15 will impact the performance of domestic machine-tool firms in the U.S. and European markets.

Exports of Taiwan-made Machine Tools in 2011 by Products Unit: US$1,000
Products	2010	2011	Annual Change (%)
EDM, Laser-cutting Machines	145,886	183,881	26
Machining Centers	939,276	1,397,785	48.8
Lathes	551,516	842,064	52.7
Drilling, Boring, Milling Machines	357,596	401,687	12.3
Grinding Machines	177,785	254,546	43.2
Shaping, Sawing, Gearing Machines	159,225	207,903	30.6
Presses and Shearing Machines	484,385	549,751	13.5
Other Metal-forming Machines	145,947	162,891	11.6
Total	2,961,616	4,000,508	35.1
Source: Taiwan Machine Tool Foundation

Imports of Machine Tools into Taiwan in 2011 by Products Unit: US$1,000
Products	2010	2011	Annual Change (%)
EDM, Laser-cutting Machines	256,982	313,396	22
Machining Centers	51,667	92,970	79.9
Lathes	91,503	97,230	6.3
Drilling, Boring, Milling Machines	32,693	29,708	-9.1
Grinding Machines	76,180	102,660	34.8
Shaping, Sawing, Gearing Machines	63,342	79,021	24.8
Presses and Shearing Machines	115,649	88,043	-23.9
Other Metal-forming Machines	15,602	25,888	65.9
Total	703,618	828,916	17.8
Source: Taiwan Machine Tool Foundation