More exports by metal industry

Turnover volume on the foreign market in the Dutch metal industry rose in 2004 and 2005. In 2004 it rose by 8.5 percent, in 2005 by 4 percent. The turnover volume on the domestic market fell however.

Higher prices

Prices for foreign buyers also increased. This pushed up foreign turnover even more: by 14.5 percent in 2004 and 7 percent in 2005. The share of exports in metal industry sales rose from 56 percent in 2003 to 61 percent in 2005. In the eight preceding years, the share of exports was almost constant.

Metal industry turnover on domestic and foreign market

No more growth for exports of basic metal

The volume of foreign sales did not increase across all sub-sectors of the metal industry. In 2004 the basic metal and the machinery and equipment sec-tors realised large volume increases in exports: 8 and 20 percent respectively. The basic metal industry profited from the up-turn in global trade in 2004 which increased the demand for metal. In the course of 2005 stocks of buyers in-creased and the export volume of basic metal decreased again, among other things because of a decreasing demand by the construction industry and the European automotive industry.

Exports of machines continue to grow

In contrast to the basic metal sector, the machinery and equipment sector increased its turnover volume in 2005for the second year in a row. This time the increase was nearly 8  percent. The largest increase in exports in 2005 took place in the transport equipment sector, however, where the volume rose by 15 percent. The machine and equipment industry realised 85 percent of its turnover abroad in 2005, compared with 70 percent in 2003. For the transport equipment industry this was 60 percent (2005) compared with just under 50 percent (2003).

Change in turnover volume from metal industry exports, by sub-sector

Tractors for container transport main export product

Goods exported more in 2005 that made most money from foreign sales all belonged to the transport equipment industry. The top three were tractors for container transport, goods vehicles, and automotive components.
Although the machine and equipment industry also experienced a substantial growth in exports, foreign trade in this sector was dominated to a lesser extent by a few single products.

Main export products

Roos Schellings and  Wiel Packbier