The Italian Machinery Federation recently stated that Italy's metallurgical machinery industry experienced an encouraging sign of recovery in January-February 2006 after experiencing a five-year low period.
In January-February this year, the production volume of the Italian metallurgical machinery industry increased by 4.6% compared with the same period of last year and increased by 0.9% compared with the fourth quarter of last year. This is the first time that the industry's production volume has increased after a one-year decline. The main driving products are automobiles, mechanical instruments and electrical appliances. At the same time, exports also increased by 13.8%, and the industry’s overall surplus doubled.
The Italian Machinery Federation is optimistic about the overall trend of the metallurgical machinery industry, but at the same time believes that the continuous increase in the prices of raw materials and energy will bring considerable uncertainties to the recovery of the industry.