Photonics manufacturers record sales growth

The result was driven by domestic business with an increase of seven percent and growth in foreign sales of almost eight percent. The result is put into perspective against the backdrop of the sharp rise in prices - producer prices for optical and photographic equipment rose by around 6 percent last year. "As a driver of innovative areas within its application markets, photonics is benefiting from their above-average growth rates. These include AI and semiconductors, for example," says Maik Müller, Chairman of the Photonics Association at Spectaris, commenting on the latest figures.

US business grows significantly

One reason for the positive development was the once again successful US business. German photonics exports to the industry's most important target country increased by more than 11% in 2023. Exports to China, on the other hand, declined slightly, causing the country to fall back to second place among the most important target countries. The great importance of international business is reflected in the unchanged high export ratio of 73%: EUR 39.2 billion in turnover was generated abroad. Due to the positive sales trend, the number of employees rose by almost seven percent to around 190,000.

The challenges: Costs, political tensions and bureaucracy

Increased costs, geopolitical tensions and a high level of bureaucracy are weighing on the industry. "Growth could have been significantly higher, but unfortunately there were trade barriers. We are appealing to politicians to reduce bureaucracy and process export applications more quickly. This is the only way that future industries such as photonics can position themselves sustainably and make a valuable contribution to Germany as a business location," says Müller.

German manufacturers are cautiously optimistic about 2024 and expect a renewed, but somewhat weaker increase of around five percent. Regardless of the current general economic uncertainties, the growth potential of photonics, with its above-average R&D ratio of almost ten percent, remains enormous. According to estimates by the consulting firm Tematys, the global market for photonics components will grow by an average of 8-9% and the global market for photonics by around 6% annually in the period 2022-2027.