The construction machinery sector got off to a good start in Italy in 2023 according to the Italian Construction Machinery Union, UNACEA. The latest data from UNACEA shows that 5,313 items of construction site machines were sold on the Italian market between January and March 2023. The first quarter of 2023 saw an increase in sales of machines of 5% over the same period in 2022.
These figures are based on purchases in the sector from machinery builders and importers analysed by UNACEA.
Growth in the sector was a little slower compared to the performance for 2022. The strongest construction machinery segment was for earthmoving machinery, which in the first three months of the year posted sales of 5,186 units (+7%). Of note was that demand for articulated dump trucks was very healthy (+27%). Meanwhile, demand for road building machinery suffered a setback (-31%), an indication – according to UNACEA's forecasts – that the market is stabilising.
Exports also performed well, with sales - according to the UNACEA-CER foreign trade report based on ISTAT data - worth in excess of €3 billion in 2022, up by 9% compared to 2021. Imports also saw an increase (+30%) for a total value of €2 billion. A significant increase in purchases from abroad which, while still ensuring a trade balance in the black by more than €990 million, nevertheless saw the balance fall by 18%.
