world news - 16.04.2004
European Window Market 2004
Whereas the European window market has slight growth to show again in 2004 after 2003, the German window market is now bottoming out after a downward trend of many years. This is the assessment of the Verband der Fenster— und Fassadenbauer e.V. This year is the first time since 1995 that window production in Germany has stopped declining. The industry with its 50,000 employees expects a production output of 13.1 million window units as last year. This contrasts with the expected European-wide growth of 3.7 per cent to a total of 104.7 million window units. The facade and window industry in Europe has more than 300,000 employees.
The growth motors in Europe, which more than compensate the weak market growth in Germany, include mainly the Aegean with Greece and Turkey, Great Britain, Scandinavia and the East European states. Great Britain is meanwhile the biggest single market in Europe with an expected production output of 15 million window units for 2004 and has thus taken over from Germany, the clear leader until 2001.
Of the materials used for window construction, plastic has the strongest growth figures to show. On a European-wide basis, the share of plastic will grow from 46.6 per cent in 2002 to 48.1 per cent in 2004. Metal drops from 25.4 to 24.8 per cent and the share of wood changes slightly to 23.0 per cent, whereas wood-metal with 4.1 per cent grows slightly. Here the trend in the German market also deviates appreciably from the overall European trend. The share of aluminium in Germany has declined from 19 per cent in 2003 to 18 per cent in 2004 due to the weakening situation in the commercial and administrative building sector. On the other hand, the materials plastic and wood, which are used more heavily in housebuilding, can increase their shares. A share of 55 per cent is expected for plastic in 2004 after 54 per cent the year before. Wood can increase its share by one per cent in 2004 to reach 23 per cent.
See also:
- — Optimism: German woodworking machinery
- — The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced free access to a database of over 3,800 U.S. exporters and their products.
- — Japan: Tropical Log Market Firms
- — Japan: Revised Forecasts
- — ALL-UKRAINIAN FORUM OF WOOD-PROCESSING EQUIPMENT AND FURNITURE PRODUCERS