PLASTICS: Machinery sales rise in Q3

Shipments of plastics injection molding machines and extruders grew in the third quarter, according to a report from the Plastics Industry Association (PLASTICS), with a preliminary estimate of their total value set at $333.8 million.

There was a 4 percent growth in shipments from the previous quarter, and they were up 8.8 percent compared to Q3 of 2020, according to statics that PLASTICS’ Committee on Equipment Statistics (CES) compiled.

Twin-screw extruders saw the largest growth, rising 44.4 percent in the third quarter and settling 61.2 percent higher than Q3 of last year. Single-screw extruders saw shipments rise 7.2 percent over Q2, and were up 15.9 percent from the same quarter in 2020.

Injection molding machines posted growth of 1.6 percent for the quarter, and were up 5.7 percent from the previous year.

In the quarterly survey of plastics machinery suppliers that CES routinely conducts, respondents showed a slightly muted outlook on present market conditions as well as their future expectations. In Q3’s results, 75.5 percent of respondents said they expect market conditions to either improve or hold steady in the coming quarter, which was down from 92.7 percent results in the Q2 survey.

Looking ahead to the next 12 months, 75 percent said they expect market conditions to be steady-to-better – a decrease from the 78.7 percent of respondents in Q2 who were looking forward to growth in the year ahead.

In October, Plastics Machinery & Manufacturing conducted its third annual survey of machinery purchasing plans for the upcoming year. Watch your mailbox and plasticsmachinerymanufacturing.com for survey results and analysis. 

“Plastics equipment shipments picked up in the third quarter as the economy continue to emerge from the pandemic. Moreover, the increase in shipments was consistent with higher plastics production, which in the third quarter rose 4.2 percent or 5.9 percent from a year earlier. The upward-sloping demand for plastics equipment has not changed,” said Perc Pineda, chief economist of PLASTICS.

“Data we’re seeing at PLASTICS confirm our prior projections that the outlook for plastics machinery in the second half of 2021 is positive albeit shipments will continue to fluctuate. The likelihood that supply-chain issues will continue to be a headwind in 2022 remains high,” Pineda said.