en.Wedoany.com Reported - The China Machine Tool Industry Association, based on the National Bureau of Statistics' metal processing machine tool production data, China Customs import and export data, association estimates, and key enterprise statistics, has compiled and analyzed the main operational indicators of the machine tool industry for the first quarter of 2026. From January to March 2026, the machine tool industry achieved operating revenue of 250.2 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 9.0%. The industry as a whole continued the growth trend of the previous year, but the divergence in sector performance was significant, with increasing disparities in operational results.

In the first quarter of 2026, the machine tool industry achieved total profits of 6.7 billion yuan, an increase from 2.9 billion yuan in the same period of the previous year. However, the industry's average profit margin was only 2.7%, still at a low level. Among them, the abrasive and abrasive tools sector was in a loss-making state, with losses decreasing by 800 million yuan compared to the same period last year.

In terms of imports and exports, the total import and export volume of China's machine tool industry in the first quarter of 2026 was 8.38 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 9.2%, with a trade surplus of 3.31 billion US dollars, up 12.9% year-on-year.

The top five sources of imports and destinations for exports of machine tool products are presented in the following charts.

Figures 1 and 2 respectively show the cumulative imports and exports of major product categories in the machine tool industry.

For metal processing machine tools, imports in the first quarter were 1.29 billion US dollars, up 0.9% year-on-year; exports were 2.29 billion US dollars, up 4.4% year-on-year.

The top five sources of imports and destinations for exports of metal processing machine tools are as follows.

The top five metal processing machine tool varieties by import value and their amounts are as follows.

The top five metal processing machine tool varieties by export value and their amounts are as follows.

In terms of production and orders, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, the output of metal cutting machine tools in the first quarter of 2026 was 213,000 units, a year-on-year increase of 3.4%; the output of metal forming machine tools was 42,000 units, a year-on-year increase of 2.4%, with both growth rates slowing compared to the previous year. According to data from key enterprises in the association, new orders for metal processing machine tools in the first quarter decreased by 0.4% year-on-year, while orders on hand increased by 4.2% year-on-year. Among them, new orders and orders on hand for metal cutting machine tools increased by 7.8% and 12.6% year-on-year, respectively; new orders and orders on hand for metal forming machine tools decreased by 14.2% and 9.3% year-on-year, respectively.

The industry's operation in the first quarter exhibited multiple characteristics. Overall industry revenue grew by 9.0% year-on-year, with the growth rate further accelerating. In terms of domestic demand, the national fixed asset investment growth rate turned positive in the first quarter to 1.7%, investment in equipment and tool purchases increased by 13.9% year-on-year, and infrastructure investment increased by 8.9% year-on-year. High-end demand from AI computing power infrastructure, AI liquid cooling industry, new energy vehicles, aerospace, and humanoid robots continued to drive growth. International market demand grew steadily, with exports of machine tool products in the first quarter increasing by 10.2% year-on-year, 3.5 percentage points higher than the full-year growth rate of the previous year.

The industry's average profit margin increased by 1.4 percentage points year-on-year to 2.7%, but remained at a low level. The improvement in industry profits was mainly driven by the cutting tools sector, whose profit margin surged to a historical high. Operating revenue and total profits of the metal forming machine tool sector both decreased by 3.5% year-on-year, shifting from growth in the previous year to a downturn. Exports of this sector increased by 2.9% year-on-year, but the growth rate narrowed by 29.9 percentage points compared to the same period last year and by 28.8 percentage points compared to the full year of the previous year. The abrasive and abrasive tools sector saw operating revenue increase by 8.1% year-on-year, but total profits recorded a loss of 2.7 billion yuan, returning to a loss-making range from a slight profit in the previous year.

Imports and exports showed a robust trend, with the export market structure continuously adjusting. Export growth rates to Southeast Asian and South Asian markets such as India, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Pakistan all exceeded 20%, with India becoming the largest export destination for China's machine tool industry; exports to major American markets such as the United States, Brazil, and Mexico declined. Affected by tightened export control policies on dual-use items and other factors, the growth rate of metal processing machine tool exports narrowed to 4.4%, down 10.8 and 13.5 percentage points compared to the same period last year and the full year of the previous year, respectively. Among them, exports of machining centers fell by 16.5%. Imports increased slightly by 0.9%, ending a four-year downward trend.

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