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2. Improvement for Italian compaction equipment sales

There was a sharp uptick in the Italian market for ride-on compaction equipment last year with sales breaking the 300-unit mark for the first time in five years. There has also been a return of large compaction equipment manufacturing to Italy, with Caterpillar restarting roller production at its Minerbio plant.

Although Off-Highway Research believes the market will remain weak – it certainly won’t recover to its pre-crisis highs of 1,200 unit sales – continued moderate growth is expected.

“There is room for optimism compared to the most recent five year period,” said the report. “There is a feeling that the worst has indeed now past, and that investments already announced will see a return to some semblance of normal working patterns for existing machines and that this in turn will eventually create replacement demand.

“While some concern remains over the extent to which this demand has already been sated by machines sold last year to customers’ intent on making the most of the artificial stimuli of government incentives, the general feeling is that steady growth can be sustained over the next five years assuming the general economy continues to perform reasonably well.”

Off-Highway Research’s study on the Italian compaction equipment segment forms part of the company’s European Service, and is now available to subscribers via the Internet Access Service. More information on the European Service is available here. The report is also available to buy as a stand-alone product. Click here for more details.