German trailer market shows signs of serious growth 14 June 2011

The German trailer industry is undergoing a very rapid revival, according to the findings of a report from an independent consulting group.

Output of trailers has been boosted by three major factors. First, the German market has recovered from the 2009 and sales of trailers are expected to exceed the combined demand of France, the UK and Italy in 2011, as they did in 2010.

Secondly, exports of trailers from Germany increased by 90% in 2010, as markets in both east and west Europe started to recover, with very few exceptions.

Thirdly, stocks of finished trailers, which had accumulated as the recession hit, have been largely eliminated, leaving the industry in a very lean condition. As a result, all new orders have ben going straight into increased production.

According to the report's authors, these factors mean that more than half the trailers built in western Europe are likely to be made in Germany from 2011 to 2015. Nevertheless, they concede that the market is unlikely to reach trailer output levels seen in 2007/8.

Trailers that have performed relatively poorly during the recession include curtainside, box van and container chassis. Those experiencing a less severe downturn were the refrigerated, tipper (dumper) and tanker/bulk trailers.

Gary Beecroft, managing director of automotive and transport consultancy CLEAR says that, broadly speaking, it is the lower cost, commodity type trailers that have seen the most difficult times, whereas expensive, specialised trailers saw smaller falls in demand.

Also, as usual in any market slowdown, falls in the market for semi-trailers were much larger than those for centre-axle and drawbar trailers.

"The turnaround in trailer output in Germany has been astonishing, but the rapid increase in production is likely to result in output marking time in 2012, and possibly 2013, before further increases are possible," comments Beecroft.

"But eventually German trailer output will exceed 100,000 units again," he concludes.

Author
Jiohn Challen

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