The orders index for textile machinery compiled by ACIMIT, the Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers, for the period from October to December 2016 rose by five per cent compared to the same period for the previous year. The value of the index thus came in at 94.2 points (basis: 2010 = 100).
This growth affected both the foreign markets where the index registered an absolute value of 103.4 points (+5 per cent) and Italy. In this case, the increase compared to the period from October to December 2015 was 16 per cent, with an absolute value for the index of 55.7 points.
On an annual basis, and compared to 2015, the index registered an average increase of four per cent (absolute value: 95.2). Domestic sales were up significantly, rising by 14 per cent (absolute index: 55.2), confirming the vigour of the Italian market. Foreign markets recorded a more contained increase in orders.
The President of ACIMIT, Raffaella Carabelli, commented on the results as follows: “The data for the index for the last quarter of 2016 confirm a year we can certainly define as positive, with an overall growing orders index.”
Data for Italian exports, updated to the first nine months of 2016, confirm a positive trend, with a three per cent increase compared to the same period of 2015. “In spite of our far from brilliant export performance in the world’s three major markets, China, Turkey and India,” states ACIMIT President, “our sales are nonetheless growing in Bangladesh and Pakistan, as well as in North America and Europe”.
The outlook for 2017 appears to be dynamic, despite the current geopolitical uncertainties. For its part, with the support of the MISE and ICE-Agency, over the course of the year ACIMIT will continue to push forward in promoting internationalization, as over 20 country/markets will be the object of promotional initiatives aimed at the penetration of Italy’s textile machinery sector. Among these initiatives are projects laid out for Sub-Saharan Africa and Iran, both areas in which ACIMIT is insistently promoting its activities for growth.