Japan’s industrial robot orders and production in 2023 show substantial declines

On January 25, the Japan Robot Association (JARA, Chairman: Kenji Yamaguchi, President and CEO of Fanuc) released its report on the new orders and production of industrial robots in Japan for the fourth quarter of 2023 (October to December), based on member data. 

New orders for industrial robots fell sharply, dropping by 28.6% year-on-year (YoY) to 157.9 billion yen. This marks the fifth consecutive quarter of YoY decline, reaching the lowest level for a fourth quarter since 2017. At the same time, production declined a 19.8% YoY decrease, amounting to 175 billion yen – the third consecutive quarter of YoY decline. 

Total shipments also saw a downturn, falling by 19.6% YoY to 182.9 billion yen, along with a 28.3% YoY decrease in total shipments to 46,201 units. This constitutes the third consecutive quarter of YoY decline in total shipments and the fourth consecutive quarter of YoY decline in total shipments. Notably, while shipments for assembly and semiconductor applications decreased, those for assembly and material handling applications remained robust within Japan. 

In terms of exports, there was a 24.7% YoY decrease in value to 136.3 billion yen, coupled with a 31.4% YoY decrease in export volume to 36,453 units. The decline was particularly pronounced in welding applications, and sales for assembly and semiconductor applications were also sluggish. 

For the full year, annual orders plunged by 24.3% YoY to 723.7 billion yen, while production decreased 11.1% YoY to 781.5 billion yen. Both orders and production showed a significant decline compared to the previous year. 

Total orders, including both members and non-members, are expected to decrease 23.6% YoY to approximately 849 billion yen, while production is expected to decrease 11.2% YoY to approximately 906 billion yen in 2023. Further details will be announced in May of this year.