Japan machine tool orders exceeds 100 billion yen for 1st time in 19 months

March 12, 2021

On March 9, 2021, the Japan Machine Tool Builders’ Association (JMTBA) announced preliminary figures of Japanese machine tool orders in February. The amounts of orders increased by 19.1% month-on-month to 105.5 billion yen, exceeding 100 billion yen for the first time in 19 months since July 2019. Domestic orders increased 15.4% month-on-month to 30.4 billion yen, and external order increased 20.7% from previous month to 75.0 billion yen. External order is leading the recovery, and the ratio of external order in the total order amount has exceeded 70% for the second consecutive month.

Domestic orders increased for the first time in two months from the previous month, and decreased for 27 consecutive months from the same month of the previous year. Due to the spread of COVID-19, the Japanese government issued a state of emergency in areas such as the Tokyo metropolitan area in January. Slow movements have continued in these regions, and Japanese domestic orders have shown a gradual recovery trend.

External order increased for the first time in two months from the previous month, and increased for the fourth consecutive month from the same month of the previous year. It seems Chinese market continuously drives the recovery.