NEWS


VDMA: machinery sales expanded by 4% in 2023


Sales of German plastics and rubber machinery exceeded €12 billion (US$13bn) in 2023, an increase of around 4%. VDMA, the trade body


that represents manufactur- ers, also noted that exports rose by 7%. However, it added that incoming orders have fallen by around 22%. “After having to cope with a price-adjusted decline of 13% in 2022, we recorded 22% fewer orders on the books last year, after adjusting for price changes,” said Thorsten Kühmann, managing director of the association. “As a result, many companies were forced to introduce reduced working hours.”


€1 billion (US$1.1bn), while sales of flexographic printing machines for film grew nearly 17% to €430 million (US$461m). The main changes in


Kühmann: “Many companies have been forced to introduce reduced working hours”


Within the overall sales


figures, sales of moulds and dies were healthy, rising more than 6% in 2023 to exceed €2 billion (US$2.1bn). Resin and parts handling machinery rose 3% to top


exports included a 49% increase in sales to Mexico (to €238m) and a 40% dip in sales to India (reaching €158m). Other key figures included: 86% capacity utilisation (down from 93% the previous year); no change in imports – which remained steady at around €1.47 bn; a 3% dip in the size of the domestic market, to around €4.1bn; and a 1% dip in workforce, taking it below 31,000. � https://www.vdma.org/ plastics-rubber-machinery


Adnoc in negotiations to buy Covestro of Germany


Emirati energy group Adnoc appears to be a step closer to buying Covestro after making an improved offer said to be around €11.7bn. Adnoc approached polycar- bonate and polyurethanes producer with a lower offer in August 2023. “We have made good


progress in our discussions with Adnoc,” said Markus Steilemann, CEO of Covestro in a 24 June announcement. “Therefore, we have decided to enter into concrete transaction negotiations.” Lower than average


8


selling prices and decreased sales volumes resulting from weak global demand have led to a recent decline in Covestro group sales. Last year saw a decrease of 20% to €14.4bn compared to 2022, while EBITDA during the same period fell by 33.2% to €1.1bn. To combat this slide, the company has implemented a global transformation program in a bid to make it “more efficient and drive digitalisation”, it said. Covestro hopes to achieve total annual savings of


FILM & SHEET EXTRUSION | July/August 2024


€400m in material and personnel costs by the end of 2028, €190m of which will be in Germany. In 2023, Adnoc gener-


ated total revenue of €2.6bn, a 41% increase on 2022. The group’s other polymer interests include a stake in polyolefins produc- er Borealis and their Borouge joint venture. Adnoc had also planned to acquire Brazilian petro- chemical producer Braskem but talks ended in May. � www.covestro.com � www.adnoc.ae


Italy sales hit a high for 2023


Amaplast, the trade association for Italian plastics and rubber machinery manufacturers, says sales hit a new high in 2023. Figures from Amaplast and the MECS Statistical Study Centre show full-year sales of €4.8 billion (US$5.2bn) – a rise of nearly 3% compared to 2022. This updates a draft estimate from December 2023. The rise was fuelled by


a near-11% rise in exports – which was partially offset by a fall in domestic demand of more than 7%. Exports of nearly €3.6bn (US$3.9bn), which make up almost 70% of produc- tion, showed strong growth for all regions – es- pecially 18% to North America and 36% to Africa, compared to 2022. Europe remained the main destination for equipment. Exports of extruders


grew by about 7%, but this was lower than the “double digit” growth seen for most types of prime machinery, according to Amaplast.


In terms of types of machinery, film and sheet extrusion accounted for around 10% of sales – the largest proportion – and thermoforming for just over 2%. For comparison, injection moulding machines accounted for nearly 9% of sales. � www.amaplast.org


www.filmandsheet.com


IMAGE: MESSE DÜSSELDORF/TILLMANN


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