Germany, on the other hand, once again fell short of the €10 billion production volume mark. At € 9.4 billion, production was only slightly above the level of the pandemic years 2020 and 2021. Overall, global production continues to be heavily concentrated in just a few countries. China, Germany and Japan together account for 58% of globally produced machine tools. China accounts for 37%, Germany for 12% and Japan for 10%. They are followed by the USA and Italy with shares of 9% and 7% respectively.

Shifts in the global market

There are also clear shifts in international trade. The global export volume for machine tools reached around €41.4 billion in 2025, around 3% below the previous year's level. The change of roles at the top of the export rankings is particularly striking: China overtook Germany as the world's largest exporter for the first time.

While German manufacturers delivered 10 percent fewer machines abroad and achieved an export volume of EUR 7 billion, Chinese suppliers increased their exports by 13 percent. At 8.6 billion euros, China thus achieved a new record value.

China is also by far the largest sales market for machine tools worldwide. The market volume grew by 5% to EUR 25.2 billion in 2025. This means that the People's Republic accounts for around 32% of global consumption. The USA follows with EUR 11.1 billion and a market share of 14%. Germany has a share of 5.7% and is therefore only just ahead of India with 5.4%.

The VDW experts expect a further upturn in the second half of the year. In addition to the defense and aerospace industries, the traditional customer industries such as automotive and mechanical engineering are not among the most important drivers. Instead, the machine tool industry is currently benefiting in particular from the electronics and semiconductor industries and their value chains. "This is due to the ongoing digitalization push, the AI boom and the global expansion of data centers," explains Dr Markus Heering, Executive Director of the VDW.

Business with the USA is also continuing to develop stably despite ongoing trade policy uncertainties. Investments there are likely to increase further in the coming months. The outlook for demand from China has recently improved slightly, as the government is increasingly promoting investment in future technologies and classifying machine tools as a critical core technology in the new five-year plan.

"The changed geopolitical conditions are leading to a stronger reorganization of economic partnerships. The planned free trade agreements with India and Mercosur are an example of this," says Heering.