Continued from page 43
of 2021 was the highest reading on record – as high as the unprecedented fall in GDP in the same period last year, during the first wave of the pandemic. The EU economy regained the pre-pandemic output level in the third quarter of 2021 and moved from recovery into expansion.
Despite mounting headwinds, the EU economy is projected to keep expanding over the forecast horizon, achieving a growth rate of 5% in 2021, 4.3% in 2022 and 2.5% in 2023. This forecast depends heavily on two factors: the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic and the pace at which supply can adjust to the rapid turnaround in demand following the re-opening of the economy. Domestic demand is set to continue to drive this expansion. Improvements in labour markets and a projected decline in savings should contribute to a sustained pace of consumer spending. The implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) is also starting to play an important role in boosting private and public investment.
Nevertheless, bottlenecks and disruptions in global supply will continue to weigh on activity in the EU, in particular in its highly integrated manufacturing sector. An example is the impact that semi-conductor shortages is having on the automotive industry. Moreover, after having fallen sharply in 2020, energy prices, particularly for natural gas, have increased at a tumultuous pace over the last months and are now well above pre-pandemic levels. This is set to weigh on consumption and investment.
Lessons learned and opportunities for development
The COVID-19 pandemic has also offered the opportunity to accelerate existing trends in relation to the twin transition. The national recovery plans are expected to amplify and accelerate both the digital and green transitions, as they will focus on investments to support sustainable growth and fight climate change. The twin transition is also seen as critical in strengthening European value chains. The EU’s Action Plan on Critical Raw Materials acknowledges the importance of circular economy and the reuse of materials in decreasing dependencies and strengthening value chains. Also, the digitalisation of supply chains can be an important step for companies to mitigate the impact of possible disruptions and attain business resilience.
44 4 LUBE MAGAZINE NO.167 FEBRUARY 2022
The twin transition can provide growth opportunities to the European lubricant industry, with large sectors such as manufacturing, renewable energy, and agriculture most likely to be impacted. Leveraging digitalization to capture value growth will also be key to support the growth of the lubricant sector, to counteract the likely negative impact on demand of the electrification of the car parc. There are several examples of how digitalization can support value growth, such as site-wide fluid management system with real-time used-oil analysis, real-time monitoring of stock levels, and digital marketing. All these can provide a way to move from product supplier to solution provider, thereby strengthening the relationship with the customers. Another opportunity is represented by e-commerce. It may seem to be going the opposite way from value-based selling.
However, we should not forget that the lubricant market is very diverse, ranging from specialties like for instance metalworking fluids – where a high level of service is usually provided – to commodities such as hydraulic fluids. Being able to sell commodities through an e-commerce platform could free valuable resources to dedicate to specialties.
The most successful companies will be those which will be best position themselves for the value pools of the future.
UEIL Industry Statistics The figures in this article relating to the European lubricant market are based on the official statistics produced by the European Lubricant Industry Association (UEIL), which cover the European Lubricant Market for the years 2019 and 2020.
As the European Association for the sector, UEIL strives to provide an independent and impartial view of the European lubricant market. The data are developed by a team of experts from leading lubricant producers with the help of external consultants for data modelling. The data interpretation and comments are produced by UEIL experts.
Complete data are available in excel format and a market summary with country analysis is available in pdf format. More information can be found on the UEIL website (
https://www.ueil.org/about-us/ structure/ueil-statistics-committee/) or by emailing the Secretariat (
secretariat@ueil.org).
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53
