World Bearings Demand to Reach $76 Billion in 2014

Global demand for ball, roller and plain bearings is expected to increase 8.5 percent per year through 2014 to $76 billion.  Unmounted ball and roller bearings will continue to account for the majority of product sales, with demand for these goods topping $54 billion.  Market gains will be supported by ongoing economic growth and improved fixed investment environments in many of the world’s developed countries. The motor vehicle and machinery markets, which together accounted for over 70 percent of all bearing sales in 2009, will remain the largest sources of bearing demand through 2014 as gains improve from those registered during the 2004-2009 period.   These and other trends, including market share and product segmentation, are presented in World Bearings, a new study from The Freedonia Group, Inc., a Cleveland-based industry market research firm.

The Asia/Pacific region will post the strongest sales growth through 2014, led by healthy 12.0 percent yearly demand increases in China.  Gains will be supported by the country’s ongoing industrialization and growing manufacturing output.  By 2009, China had become the world’s largest manufacturer of motor vehicles, which will provide bearing producers with important new sales opportunities as output continues to climb.  China will account for nearly one-half of all additional global bearing demand through 2014, and by 2019 the country is forecast to have a bearing market larger than that of North America, Western Europe and Japan combined.

Historically, advances in bearing demand in the developed areas of the US, Western Europe and Japan have been much slower than in the developing world.  However, this will not be the case in all areas through 2014, as bearing demand in many developed countries bounces back following the slump in durables manufacturing (especially of motor vehicles) that hit between 2007 and 2009.  Growth in these areas will be supported largely by solid recoveries in motor vehicle manufacturing and accelerating growth in durable goods manufacturing output. 

In 2009, unmounted roller bearings surpassed unmounted ball bearings to become the largest segment of the world bearing market in value terms (ball bearings continue to account for the largest share of sales in unit terms).  Unmounted roller bearings will also record the strongest gains of any product through 2014, driven by performance advantages and increased output of motor vehicles, construction and mining machinery, conveyors, machine tools and wind turbines. 

The Freedonia Group is a leading international business research company, founded in 1985, that publishes more than 100 industry research studies annually. This industry analysis provides an unbiased outlook and a reliable assessment of an industry and includes product segmentation and demand forecasts, industry trends, demand history, threats and opportunities, competitive strategies, market share determinations and company profiles.