GENERAL NEWS
German machine tool industry levels off
“ After two years of noticeable reluctance to invest, the German machine tool industry is showing the first signs of stabilising. Overall, however, incoming orders for 2025 remained slightly below that of the previous year. Orders declined by three per cent, with considerably different developments domestically and overseas. While international demand increased by three percent, new domestic orders plummeted 16 per cent. The reluctance of many German industrial customers to invest reflects the difficult situation for key user industries, above all the automotive industry and its suppliers. A slight recovery was recorded by the end of the year. However, in the fourth quarter of 2025, the total number of new orders was up four per cent on the previous year’ s figure,” the VDW( German Machine Tool Builders’ Association) told ISMR.
At the same time, there is an ongoing shift in global power relations when it comes to the machine tool industry. This has become particularly apparent with the rapid expansion of Chinese industry. According to the VDW, machine tool production( without parts and accessories) in the People’ s Republic of China reached a new record level of approx. 30 billion euros in 2025. Germany, it confirmed, missed the 10-billion-euro mark for production volume( reaching 9.4 billion euros).
“ Overall, global production is still strongly focused on just a few countries. China,
Germany and Japan together account for 58 per cent of the machine tools produced worldwide, with 37 per cent attributed to China, 12 percent to Germany and ten per cent to Japan. They are followed by the U. S. and Italy with shares of nine and seven per cent respectively,” commented the VDW.
Global market shifts
Markus Heering.
There are also noticeable shifts in international trade.
“ The global export volume for machinetools reached around 41.4 billion euros in 2025, approx. three per cent less than the previous year. Particularly striking is the shift in positions at the top of the export rankings: China has outperformed Germany for the first time to become the world’ s largest exporter. While German manufacturers delivered ten per cent less machinery abroad and recorded an export volume of seven billion euros, Chinese suppliers increased their exports by 13 per cent and achieved a new record of 8.6 billion euros,” said the VDW.
“ At the same time, China is by far the largest sales market for machine tools worldwide. Market volume grew by five per cent in 2025 to reach 25.2 billion euros, with around 32 per cent of worldwide consumption attributed to the People’ s Republic of China. It is followed by the U. S. with 11.1- billion euros and a market share of 14 per cent. Germany achieved a share of 5.7 per cent and lies only slightly ahead of India with 5.4 per cent,” it continued.
VDW specialists are expecting another resurgence in the second half of the year. The machine tool industry, they said, is currently gaining substantially more from the electronics and semiconductor industry, as well as their value chains.“ This can be attributed to the rapid growth of digitalisation, the AI boom and the global expansion of data centres,” explained Dr. Markus Heering, Managing Director, VDW.
Business with the U. S. also remains stable, despite ongoing commercial uncertainties, confirmed the VDW. Investments, it said, are likely to further increase there in the coming months. When it comes to demand from China, prospects have improved slightly thanks to a strengthening of investment in future technologies and the classification of machine tools as critical core technology in the government’ s new five-year plan. n
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:// vdw. de / en /
Honda orders SkyLines press line from AP & T
AP & T has received an order from Honda for a SkyLines press line for its R & D centre in Japan. The line will support Honda in validating nextgeneration, lightweight forming technologies as the industry transitions to electrification.
“ The automotive industry’ s
Michael Hunger. shift to electrification demands lighter, stronger and more energy-efficient carbody structures. For Honda, AP & T ® SkyLines offers a platform to ensure that the latest press hardening technologies can be adapted and scaled for industrial use,” explained the Swedish press manufacturer.
“ What has really driven this project is mutual trust and a shared focus on innovation,” added Michael Hunger, Managing Director, AP & T Europe.“ Honda has a strong vision for the future; we support that with state-of-the-art technology that enables it to push the limits.
This is more than delivering a machine; we are working side by side to develop the processes of tomorrow.”
Unlike a full-scale production line, the system is purpose-built for testing and validation. It is designed to enable efficient trial runs while replicating realistic forming conditions. The furnaces have also been specially tested to handle Japan’ s high humidity and summer heat.
The press line, including a servo press, was developed and built in Sweden and then shipped to Japan. One of the greatest challenges, said AP & T, has been adapting the design to Japan’ s seismic conditions. Reinforced structures and detailed load calculations, developed with Honda’ s engineers, were required to ensure reliability and safety.
“ We spent hours in technical discussions, running calculations and testing different scenarios,” Michael Hunger explained.“ That’ s where the partnership really came alive. We brought our technology, Honda brought its local expertise and, together, we found the right solutions.”
Jun Yokoyama, Chief Engineer, Honda, commented:“ With AP & T we’ ve found a partner who understands our technical requirements and shares our ambition to anticipate and meet the evolving demands of the automotive industry. This press line will be a vital tool in aligning our R & D efforts with the future needs of advanced press hardening.”
The delivery also marks the beginning of a partnership between Honda, AP & T and Gedia. The three companies are committed to working together to develop new forming technologies that support lighter, safer and more energy-efficient vehicles. n
https:// aptgroup. com /
ISMR April 2026 | ismr. net | 7