North American Plastics Machinery Shipments Slow
The Plastics Industry Assn. (PLASTICS) reported lower shipment levels compared to the previous quarter, but higher year-over-year results.
North American shipments of primary plastics machinery, including injection molding and extrusion equipment, slowed in the third quarter according to the statistics compiled and reported by the Plastics Industry Association’s (PLASTICS) Committee on Equipment Statistics (CES).
Reporting companies’ preliminary estimate of shipment value was $353.8 million for the third quarter. That figure was down 14.4% compared to the previous quarter, but was 6.0% higher than the figure from a year earlier.
By equipment type, injection molding shipments fell 17.1% in the third quarter, while shipments of single-and twin-screw extruders rose by 4.9% and 12.4%, respectively. Compared to the third quarter last year, shipments of single-screw extruders fell by 13.1% while shipments of twin-screw extruders rose by 19.3%.
Perc Pineda, PLASTICS Chief Economic Officer, noted that this year’s third quarter shipments remain above the first three quarters’ shipments of last year, adding that given ongoing supply chain issues due to the pandemic, “it would not be surprising” to see shipments in the fourth quarter to finish above the third quarter.
Plastics machinery shipments in North America slowed in the third quarter compared to the second, but were higher than 2021 levels.
Photo Credit: PLASTICS
Sentiment Holds Steady
In its quarterly survey of plastics machinery suppliers, PLASTICS found that 31.3% of the survey respondents expect market conditions to either improve or hold steady in the next quarter, and 34.4% expect market conditions to be steady-to-better, which was marginally lower than the 35.0% in the second quarter’s survey results.
Imports and Exports Down
Plastics machinery exports decreased by 10.2% to $198.8 million in the third quarter. Mexico and Canada remained the top export markets for U.S. plastics machinery, with combined exports to USMCA partners totaling $109.7 million, accounting for 65.9% of total plastics machinery exports of the U.S. Imports decreased by 12.1% to $423.6 million in the quarter. As such, the U.S. plastics machinery trade deficit narrowed from $260.7 million in the second quarter to $224.7 million in the third quarter.
