Packaging machines: growth in Italian manufacturing continues
The upturn in domestic Italian packaging machinery sales has continued in the first quarter of 2017, on the heels of the two digit growth figures at the end of 2016. According to data collected by the Italian Packaging Machinery Manufacturers Association Ucima, domestic sales have grown by +6.5% in the first quarter of 2017 over the same period of 2016, following the excellent +10.4% growth at the end of 2016.
This success is certainly partly due to the hyperamortisation incentives enacted by the Government, which should continue to drive growth in the domestic market over the coming months. Orders from Italian companies have grown by +9.9% this first quarter. “The Industry 4.0 programme enacted by Carlo Calenda, Minister for Economic Development, is supporting sales of our technologies within Italy,” says Enrico Aureli, President of Ucima. “It has focussed attention on the technological advances made by our companies in recent years to support clients in streamlining their production lines with a just-in-time management approach.”
Good performance has also been registered by Italian packaging machinery manufacturers in export markets. In the first quarter of the year, sales have grown by +12.8%, with orders up by 8.3% over the same period last year.
Overall, industry turnover has grown by +11.6%.
Forecasts for the coming months are also positive. Almost half of the companies interviewed by the Ucima Study Centre said they expect sales to hold at their current levels.
