Sales of primary plastics machinery rose to $413.2 million in the second quarter of 2022, an increase of 21.4 percent over the previous quarter and 28.81 percent higher than a year ago, according to statistics compiled by the Plastics Industry Association’s Committee on Equipment Statistics (CES).
According to the numbers reported by PLASTICS, the value of injection molding shipments rose 19.4 percent in the second quarter, while single- and twin-screw extruders saw an increase of 10.2 percent and 86.6 percent, respectively.
Perc Pineda, PLASTICS’ chief economist, said, “Following last year’s robust plastics machinery shipments, it is reassuring to see our estimates of shipments in Q2 2022 significantly above those from Q2 2021, despite the economic contraction in the first half of 2022. It is still expected that plastic products manufacturing will increase this year. By extension, it should continue to generate demand for plastics equipment.”
“However,” Pineda added, “equipment demand growth rates could be reverting to its long-run trend after double-digit growth rates since the economy bounced back from the COVID-19 recession. Rising interest rates, the ongoing recovery of supply chain, and tight labor market are headwinds.”
A survey of plastics machinery suppliers conducted by CES tracks their view of present market conditions and expectations for the future. The second quarter survey showed 35 percent of respondents expect market conditions to either improve or hold steady in the coming quarter. Thirty-five percent of respondents also expect steady-to-better market conditions over the next 12 months – a result that is five percentage points below the previous quarter’s results.
“The survey results, particularly the 12-month outlook, reflect cautious optimism of survey participants considering the U.S. economic slowdown in the first half of the year and the prospect of lower economic output this year compared to last year,” Pineda said.
Meanwhile, plastics machinery exports rose 14 percent to $221.4 million in Q2, and Mexico and Canada remained the top export markets.
