Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Sustainable Plastics
  • Rubber News
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Processor News
    • Suppliers
    • More News
    • Digital Edition
    • End Markets
    • Special Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Resin pricing news
    • Videos
    • Injection Molding
    • Blow Molding
    • Film & Sheet
    • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
    • Rotomolding
    • Thermoforming
    • Recycling
    • Machinery
    • Materials
    • Molds/Tooling
    • Product news
    • Design
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Sustainability
    • Public Policy
    • Material Insights Videos
    • Numbers that Matter
    • Automotive
    • Packaging
    • Medical
    • Consumer Products
    • Construction
    • CEO Issue
    • Diversity
    • Best Places to Work
      • 2022 winners
    • Processor of the Year
    • Rising Stars
    • Women Breaking the Mold
  • Opinion
    • The Plastics Blog
    • Kickstart
    • One Good Resin
    • BRICS and Plastics
    • All Things Data
    • Viewpoint
    • From Pillar to Post
    • Perspective
    • Mailbag
    • Fake Plastic Trees
  • Shop Floor
    • Blending
    • Compounding
    • Drying
    • Injection Molding
    • Purging
    • Robotics
    • Size Reduction
    • Structural Foam
    • Tooling
    • Training
  • Events
    • K Show Livestream
    • Plastics News Events
    • Industry Events
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Livestreams/Webinars
    • Editorial Livestreams
    • Ask the Expert
    • Plastics News Events Library
    • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Plastics News Executive Forum
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Plastics News Caps & Closures
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
    • Plastics in Automotive
    • Reuters Responsible Business Europe 2022
    • Reifenhäuser Technologies Livestreams
    • Polymer Points Live
    • Numbers that Matter Live
    • Plastics in Politics Live
    • Sustainable Plastics Live
    • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
    • Plastics in Healthcare Library
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
  • Resin Prices
    • All Resins
    • Commodity TPs
    • High Temp TPs
    • ETPs
    • Thermosets
    • Recycled Plastics
    • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
    • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
    • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
    • Historic Thermosets
    • Historic Recycled Plastics
  • Rankings & Data
    • Injection Molders
    • Blow Molders
    • Film Sheet
    • Thermoformers
    • Pipe Profile Tubing
    • Rotomolders
    • Mold/Toolmakers
    • LSR Processors
    • Recyclers
    • Compounders - List
    • Association - List
    • Plastic Lumber - List
    • All
  • Directory
  • Custom
    • Sponsored Content
    • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
    • Conair Sponsored Content
    • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
    • ENGEL Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Classifieds
    • Place an Ad
    • Sign up for Early Classified
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Viewpoint
March 29, 2010 02:00 AM

BRIC nations may lead 'new normal'

Steve Toloken
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print

    There's a lot of talk these days about how the economic rise of the BRIC nations — Brazil, Russia,

    India and China — is reshaping business. That came through loud and clear to me at the Taipei Plas show this month in Taiwan.

    I spent the five days of the show talking to companies, and heard the same story over and over again: Sales to the BRIC economies and other emerging markets in the Middle East, Africa and elsewhere are driving a solid economic recovery for Taiwan.

    That's good for Taiwan's plastics machinery firms, and its midpriced range of equipment, but what does it mean for North America, Western Europe or Japan?

    Can those traditional centers of plastics equipment fully tap into that BRIC growth, or are places like Taiwan better positioned, with better price points, to profit long term?

    I got back to my office in Guangzhou and looked at new data from the Japanese plastics industry, and it made me think the Taiwanese have a point.

    Japan's injection molding press makers sold 12,600 units in 2008, but the bottom fell out and they sold fewer than 5,000 presses last year.

    Sales revenue for Japanese press makers dropped more than 55 percent in 2009. Taiwan's machinery makers, meanwhile, said their sales “only” dropped 30 percent.

    The Taiwanese tout that as evidence that they didn't fall as much, and more importantly, are recovering faster, than competitors in Japan and other developed economies.

    Taiwan argues that it is better positioned, with the right price to performance requirements, for the emerging markets where the growth is now.

    There's obviously not a lot of growth in the traditional markets. When I joined Plastics News in the late 1990s, the American injection press market was about 6,000 machines a year. Last year, it was a miserable 1,200.

    Of course it will get better, and settle at some higher number. But what will be the “new normal”? 2,500?

    I also wonder if Japan's new normal will be a lot lower. Japanese injection press industry sources I talked with are seeing some recovery, but data for November, December and January (the last available) suggest the Japanese industry is on pace to sell about 7,000 machines this year. One large Japanese machine maker estimates the industry will sell 8,400 injection molding machines this year.

    That's better than 2009, but it's not anywhere close to 2008 or the 18,000 machines Japan sold in 2004.

    It's certainly not the solid recovery Taiwan is claiming. Taiwan's machinery association said directly that 2010 could be as good as 2008. Japan isn't ready to say that.

    Of course, there could be some false optimism from Taiwan's companies.

    A hard landing for China's economy could really hurt Taiwan, and developed economies could recover in a year or two. As well, Taiwanese firms cannot match the best technology, and are challenged going head to head against Japanese all-electrics, for example.

    But Taiwan's plastics machinery industry is very sizable (it's among the five largest exporters in the world), its businesses travel aggressively, and they have a strong government research partnership. That makes its BRIC-driven economic recovery worth watching.

    Some American firms have a similar approach. One of them, Thermoforming Systems LLC, set up an Asian manufacturing partnership and said it's seeing rapid growth in emerging markets because it can meld its expertise with lower costs of making machinery in Taiwan.

    Milacron Inc., as well, told me last year in India that their factory there saw strong sales in emerging markets like Africa, after it learned to modify its equipment and tailor its offerings.

    What's it all mean? At the very least, you'd better dust of your emerging market strategy.

     Toloken is Plastics News' Guangzhou, China-based Asia bureau chief.

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    Peek behind the data shows how top injection molders grew in 2021
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Plastics News would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor at [email protected]

    Most Popular
    1
    Hillenbrand makes another deal in plastics machinery
    2
    California passes strictest plastics law in US, with EPR and recycling targets
    3
    Hillenbrand cites recycling as 'strategic growth' area with Herbold acquisition
    4
    Eastman Chemical looking to build another major plastics recycling facility
    5
    Newell Rubbermaid buys New Zealand-based Sistema Plastics
    SIGN UP FOR TO RECEIVE THESE EMAILS AND ENEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe today

    Subscribe to Plastics News

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Plastics News covers the business of the global plastics industry. We report news, gather data and deliver timely information that provides our readers with a competitive advantage.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI 48207-2997

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1723

    Resources
    • About
    • Staff
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Media Kit
    • Data Store
    • Digital Edition
    • Custom Content
    • People
    • Contact
    • Careers
    • Sitemap
    Related Crain Publications
    • Sustainable Plastics
    • Rubber News
    • Urethanes Technology
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Tire Business
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2022. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Processor News
        • Injection Molding
        • Blow Molding
        • Film & Sheet
        • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
        • Rotomolding
        • Thermoforming
        • Recycling
      • Suppliers
        • Machinery
        • Materials
        • Molds/Tooling
        • Product news
        • Design
      • More News
        • Mergers & Acquisitions
        • Sustainability
        • Public Policy
        • Material Insights Videos
        • Numbers that Matter
      • Digital Edition
      • End Markets
        • Automotive
        • Packaging
        • Medical
        • Consumer Products
        • Construction
      • Special Reports
        • CEO Issue
        • Diversity
        • Best Places to Work
          • 2022 winners
        • Processor of the Year
        • Rising Stars
        • Women Breaking the Mold
      • Newsletters
      • Resin pricing news
      • Videos
    • Opinion
      • The Plastics Blog
      • Kickstart
      • One Good Resin
      • BRICS and Plastics
      • All Things Data
      • Viewpoint
      • From Pillar to Post
      • Perspective
      • Mailbag
      • Fake Plastic Trees
    • Shop Floor
      • Blending
      • Compounding
      • Drying
      • Injection Molding
      • Purging
      • Robotics
      • Size Reduction
      • Structural Foam
      • Tooling
      • Training
    • Events
      • K Show Livestream
      • Plastics News Events
        • Plastics News Executive Forum
        • Injection Molding & Design Expo
        • Plastics News Caps & Closures
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
        • Plastics in Automotive
      • Industry Events
      • Injection Molding & Design Expo
      • Livestreams/Webinars
        • Reuters Responsible Business Europe 2022
        • Reifenhäuser Technologies Livestreams
      • Editorial Livestreams
        • Polymer Points Live
        • Numbers that Matter Live
        • Plastics in Politics Live
        • Sustainable Plastics Live
      • Ask the Expert
      • Plastics News Events Library
        • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
        • Plastics in Healthcare Library
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
      • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Resin Prices
      • All Resins
      • Commodity TPs
        • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
      • High Temp TPs
        • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
      • ETPs
        • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
      • Thermosets
        • Historic Thermosets
      • Recycled Plastics
        • Historic Recycled Plastics
    • Rankings & Data
      • Injection Molders
      • Blow Molders
      • Film Sheet
      • Thermoformers
      • Pipe Profile Tubing
      • Rotomolders
      • Mold/Toolmakers
      • LSR Processors
      • Recyclers
      • Compounders - List
      • Association - List
      • Plastic Lumber - List
      • All
    • Directory
    • Custom
      • Sponsored Content
      • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
      • Conair Sponsored Content
      • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
      • ENGEL Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • Sign up for Early Classified