Japan's Machine Tool Industry Order Statistics Analysis, September 2011

The Japan Machine Tool Industry Association (JMTBA) announced accurate statistics on Japanese machine tool orders in September 2011. The data shows that in September 2011, the total amount of Japanese machine tool orders was 110.507 billion yen, which was an increase of 11.7% from the previous period and an increase of 20.1% year-on-year. Japan’s machine tool orders have been growing for the second consecutive month in 22 months, and the order volume in September has rebounded to more than 100 billion yen. Among them, the orders for CNC machine tools in September were 107.634 billion yen, which was a 12% increase from the previous period and an increase of 30.8% year-on-year. In the first three quarters of 2011, the total volume of Japanese machine tool orders totaled 997.09 billion yen, a year-on-year increase of 41.9%. Among them, the first nine months of CNC machine tool orders for 970.412 billion yen, accounting for 97.32% of the total orders.

In September, sales of Japanese machine tools reached 126.653 billion yen, a 31.6% increase from the previous period and an increase of 26.7% year-on-year. Sales of CNC machine tools were 123.287 billion yen, a year-on-year increase of 28.2%. In the first three quarters of the year, Japan’s cumulative sales of machine tools were 873.913 billion yen, a year-on-year increase of 42.6%. In September, the balance of orders for machine tools was 629.457 billion yen, a year-on-year increase of 33.3%.

In September, domestic domestic demand orders in Japan fell month-on-month, and overseas orders rebounded. In September 2011, domestic orders fell by 5.5% to 35.496 billion yen, but still increased by 30.9% year-on-year. During the same period, overseas orders were 75.011 billion yen, a 22.2% increase from the previous quarter and an increase of 15.6% year-on-year. In the first three quarters, Japan’s domestic orders totaled 316.801 billion yen, a year-on-year increase of 44.2%; overseas orders accumulated to 680.298 billion yen, a year-on-year increase of 40.8%. In September, domestic orders for Japanese machine tools fell month-on-month, but overseas orders rose back. Figure 1 shows the trend of machine tool orders in Japan from January 2010 to September 2011.

2. Machinery Manufacturing Orders Decline by 10.3% MoM Decreased Domestic Demand Orders In Japan, domestic orders accounted for 85.15% of domestic orders in machinery manufacturing. Orders for machinery manufacturing were 30.225 billion yen, a decrease of 10.3% month-on-month, but a year-on-year increase of 33.3%. . Among them, the order amount of the largest general machinery manufacturing industry was 14.421 billion yen, down by 12.4% from the previous quarter, but it was up 24.8% year-on-year. Another major machine tool user - the automotive industry orders amounted to 9.744 billion yen, a decrease of 24.1% from the previous quarter, still an increase of 52.1%. Orders for electrical and precision machinery amounted to 4.693 billion yen, a 37.7% increase from the previous quarter and an increase of 29.5% year-on-year. The volume of orders for transportation machinery such as aircrafts and ships amounted to 1.376 billion yen, a 39.1% increase from the previous quarter and an increase of 26.4% year-on-year. In addition, in September, the amount of orders for metal products industry was 1.803 billion yen, an increase of 49.1% compared with the previous period and an increase of 38.6% year-on-year; the amount of orders for other manufacturing industries was 1.78 billion yen, a year-on-year increase of 68.9% and a year-on-year increase of 13.5%.

In the first three quarters, cumulative orders for machinery manufacturing were 280.09 billion yen, an increase of 46.2% year-on-year. Among them, the general manufacturing orders were 144.242 billion yen, an increase of 60.5%; the automotive industry orders were 89.777 billion yen, an increase of 40.3%.

3. Strong growth in U.S. orders, accounting for 33.5% of Chinese orders

In September, three of the top five markets in demand came from Asia, with a total of 304.94 billion yen in orders, which accounted for 40.65% of the total overseas demand. Orders in the European Union amounted to 10.249 billion yen, a decrease of 9.1% from the previous quarter and a year-on-year increase of 26.1%.

In the first three quarters, the amount of machine tool orders from China was 255.664 billion yen, ranking first in the overseas market for Japanese machine tool orders, an increase of 41% year-on-year; followed by the United States, the amount of orders was 148.253 billion yen, a year-on-year increase of 63.4%; the third was In Germany, the amount of orders was 40.935 billion yen, a year-on-year increase of 70.6%.

Recently, although orders from China have decreased, orders in Europe and the United States have increased for 21 consecutive months, and equipment investment plans for auto and machinery companies in Europe and the United States have always maintained a slow growth trend. At the same time, due to the impact of flooding in Thailand, some Thai-owned machine tools and equipment need to be replaced or repaired. After such conditions stabilize, the demand for machine tool equipment and accessories will soar.

In terms of overseas demand for Japanese machine tools in September, ranking according to order demand was: China still ranked first with 25.11 billion yen orders, and order amount increased by 26.9% from the previous quarter, but it was down 2.6% year-on-year, accounting for Japanese overseas orders 33.5% of the total; the United States ranked second with 22.75 billion yen, an increase of 58.7% over the previous period and 53.7% year-on-year, accounting for 30.3% of the total overseas orders; Germany ranked third with 28.25 billion yen, a decrease of 28.7% from the previous month. A decrease of 10.8%, with a share of 4.7%; Thailand rose to fourth with 2.743 billion yen, an increase of 45.2% from the previous period, and a year-on-year increase of 5.7%; South Korea was the fifth with 2.65 billion yen, a 4.5% increase from the previous month but a year-on-year decrease 14.8%. In September, orders for machine tools from abroad generally picked up. Among them, the growth rate of US machine tools was significant, and the share of orders had reached 30%, which was close to that of China.