April 2024 Japan machine tool orders – total JPY 120.9 billion

May 24, 2024

The Japan Machine Tool Builders’ Association (JMTBA) announced the firm value of machine tool orders for April 2024. The total amount of new orders was 120.9 billion yen. This was the first month-on-month (MoM) decline in three months and the 16th consecutive month of year-on-year (YoY) decline. Although there was a reactionary decrease from the effect of the fiscal year-end in the previous month, mainly due to domestic demand, total orders exceeded 120 billion yen for the second consecutive month, reaching a higher level than in January and February of this year.

Domestic demand decreased MoM for the first time in three months and YoY for the 20th consecutive month to 36.3 billion yen, falling below 40 billion yen for the first time in two months, but above 35 billion yen.

Out of 11 industry categories, 8 industries showed YoY growth, giving a sense that domestic demand has bottomed out. On the other hand, in terms of major industries, Industrial Machinery fell by more than 30% YoY, and Motor Vehicles remained below 10 billion yen, indicating that the cautious investment stance has continued.

Foreign demand declined MoM for the first time in three months and for the 16th consecutive month YoY to 84.5 billion yen. It was the first time in two months that demand fell below 85 billion yen, but it remained near 85 billion yen and remained firm. Among the three major regions, only Asia posted a month-on-month increase.

Orders by region were as follows: In Asia, there were large batches of orders in various regions. Orders from East Asia exceeded 30 billion yen for the first time in 13 months, with MoM increases in South Korea, Taiwan and China. Other Asian countries such as Vietnam and India also posted increases, bringing the Asian total to over 40 billion yen for the first time in 12 months and the first YoY increase in 16 months.

In Europe, orders fell from the previous month in Germany, Switzerland and other regions, and fell below 17 billion yen for the first time in three months. Since the beginning of 2024, new orders from Europe have been around 17 billion yen, which is a step-down from the level through 2023 (around 20 billion yen).

In North America, demand fell below 23 billion yen for the first time in 35 months due to the impact of large cancellations in the United States, but the situation does not seem to have changed much from the previous month.

April Summary

	Amount (million yen)	MoM change (%)	YoY change (%)
Total Orders	120,902	89.1	91.1
Domestic total	36,372	73.8	87.2
Industrial Machinery	12,828	64.9	65.8
Motor Vehicles	8,844	92.8	109.4
Electrical & Precision Machinery	4,397	61.5	101.3
Aircraft/Shipbuilding/Transport equipment	2,677	151.4	135.7
Foreign total	84,530	97.8	92.9
Asia	41,955	108.8	102.0
Europe	16,950	98.2	81.6
North America	22,700	80.4	85.2