The total global production value of plastics and rubber machinery came to EUR 33.9 bn in 2015 (2014: EUR 32.5 bn). European producers made up about 40% of the total – or EUR 13.5 bn (2014: EUR 13 bn) – representatives of the European plastics and rubber machinery manufacturers association Euromap (Frankfurt / Germany; www.euromap.org) said at this year’s “K” fair (www.k-online.com). Euromap president Luciano Anceschi emphasised Europe’s leading role in the segment, with machinery exports from the region accounting for 47% (2014: 49%) of the global total.

German producers made up about half, or EUR 7 bn, of the European total, followed by their Italian counterparts at EUR 2.6 bn. Business with North America and India was especially good, while transactions with some emerging economies fell short of expectations. Trade with China fell by 20% year-on-year in 2015, dropping back to its 2010 level in volume-terms.

That notwithstanding, European machinery producers are optimistic about their prospects for 2017 and 2018. Global output is expected to grow by an average of 3.4%, with Anceschi anticipating growth in Europe to reach about 2%. Euromap represents more than 1,000 machinery manufacturers from Austria, France, Germany, the UK, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain, Switzerland and Turkey, which stand for a total workforce of about 57,000 employees.