February 25, 2008 -- Taiwan has become the world's largest production base for vertical machining centers with annual output reaching over 25,000 units last year, up 20% year-on-year, according to statistics compiled by the Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry (TAMI).

Over the past several years, domestic manufacturers of vertical machining centers have made big progress, one sign of which is the narrowing of the lead commanded by Japanese counterparts in terms of unit selling prices.

An analysis by the TAMI showed, as mainland China has eliminated tax exemptions on imported goods, that Taiwan machinery manufacturers have gradually reduced export of low-tier products to the mainland while keeping exports of high-priced models, aiming to cut production costs and minimize the impact of the mainlandâ??s imposition of import tariffs.

The world's leading producing nations of machine tools shipped 11,040 units of vertical machining centers worth US$843 million to the mainland last year, with more vertical machining centers having been bought by China than any other kind of machine tools last year.

Japan was the biggest supplier of machine tools to China by shipping 5,306 units of vertical machining centers worth US$405 million last year, accounting for 48% of mainland's total imports of the products. The average price for the vertical machining centers shipped from Japan to the mainland reached US$76,400 last year.

Taiwan came in second place by selling 3,611 units of the vertical machining centers worth US$247 million to the mainland last year, accounting for 29.4%, with the average selling price for vertical machining centers shipped from Taiwan to China being US$68,500 last year.

The third place went to South Korea which exported 976 units of vertical machining centers worth US$70.25 million to the mainland, accounting for 8.3%. The average selling price of the products shipped from South Korea to the mainland was US$71,900. Other major nations shipped vertical machining centers to the mainland last year, in descending order, included Germany, the U.S., Switzerland and Italy.

European quality even in machine tools proved to be a real factor: German, Swiss and Italian makers quoted average selling prices for vertical machining centers at double or even quadruple those offered by Asian counterparts. Taiwan quoted prices at 90% of those offered by Japan, with South Korea doing the same at 94%. The U.S. was even more price-competitive than both Taiwan and S. Korea by quoting prices as low as only 68% of those offered by Japan.

Source: Taiwan Economic News