China Machinery Trade Nears $700B as Machine Tool Orders Rise

China’s machinery industry recorded significant trade growth in the first half of 2026, while new orders for metal-cutting machine tools increased by more than 20%, according to industry data.

The China Machinery Industry Federation (CMIF) reported that China’s total machinery industry trade in goods reached $692.8 billion, an increase of 15.9% compared with the same period a year earlier. The increase was supported by higher exports and continued demand for advanced manufacturing equipment.

Machinery Exports Show Broad-Based Growth

China’s machinery imports totaled $133.4 billion, up 1.4% year over year, while exports reached $559.3 billion, an increase of 20%.

Export growth was reported across several major trading regions, including:

• Belt and Road countries: 22%
• Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) countries: 21.6%
• European Union: 33.1%
• Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN): 19.5%

Exports to Germany, Vietnam and India increased 22.8%, 18.8% and 26.5%, respectively.

Exports to the United States declined 0.4% compared with the previous year. The relatively small change indicates a more stable trade pattern compared with earlier fluctuations, according to the reported industry data.

High-end and new-energy equipment were among the areas reporting notable export growth. Automobile exports increased 53% year over year, while exports of electric passenger vehicles rose 76%. Lithium-ion battery exports increased 42.7%.

Other machinery categories reporting continued growth included electrical equipment such as generators, transformers and control devices; construction machinery including excavators, loaders and electric forklifts; and heavy equipment such as mining machinery and conveyor systems.

China Machine Tool Trade Increases

The China Machine Tool & Tool Builders’ Association (CMTBA), citing data from China’s National Bureau of Statistics and customs authorities, reported that total machine tool and tool trade reached $17.2 billion during the first half of 2026. That represented a 5.9% increase from the same period in 2025.

Machine tool imports totaled $5.35 billion, up 6.3%, while exports reached $11.84 billion, an increase of 5.8%.

Japan, Germany, Taiwan, South Korea and Switzerland remained the five largest sources of machine tool imports during the period.

Within the overall machine tool trade, metalworking machine tool imports totaled $2.61 billion, down 2.6% year over year. Exports of metalworking machine tools reached $4.57 billion, up 0.3%.

Key machine tool categories included machining centers, non-traditional machine tools, grinding machines, gear-generating machines and turning machines.

Metal-Cutting Machine Tool Orders Rise

One of the more significant indicators in the first half of 2026 was the increase in new orders for metal-cutting machine tools. Orders rose 20.5% year over year, according to the reported CMTBA data.

The increase was associated with demand from several emerging and technology-focused manufacturing segments. These include components for AI-related liquid-cooling systems, precision server components, humanoid robots, energy-storage batteries and power inverters.

These applications typically require high levels of machining accuracy and automation, contributing to demand for advanced machine tools and integrated manufacturing systems.

New Manufacturing Projects Point to Equipment Demand

Several announced manufacturing investments also illustrate the range of industries purchasing or planning to purchase precision manufacturing equipment.

Liangshan Xin Yi Tong Hydraulic Tech Co. announced a $79 million investment to establish a production line for automotive precision components. Planned equipment purchases include machining equipment, surface grinders, wire-cut electrical discharge machining (EDM) equipment, multi-station drilling machines and surface roughness inspection systems.

Shuangjie Smart Tech Co. is investing $74 million in a facility focused on industrial robot manufacturing, with a planned annual production capacity of 10,000 units.

Shaoxing Zhongzhou Automatic Equipment Co. announced a $28.5 million project to manufacture industrial 3D printers.

Tian Jian Long Wei (Yangzhong) Automotive Component Co. is investing $21.4 million in production of smart steering systems. The project is expected to have an annual production capacity of 450,000 units.

Zhuhai Bojay Electronics Co. announced a $140 million investment for a new facility and equipment purchases. The project includes precision engraving machines, machining centers, vacuum brazing equipment and leakage inspection systems for server inspection and heat-radiator component production.

Together, the projects represent investment across automotive components, robotics, additive manufacturing, electronics and other precision-manufacturing applications.

China Manufacturing Market Remains a Key Industry Indicator

The first-half data points to continued activity across China’s machinery and machine tool markets, with particularly strong growth in exports and new metal-cutting machine tool orders.

Growth in robotics, electric vehicles, energy storage, electronics and other advanced manufacturing sectors is contributing to demand for precision machining and automated production equipment. The performance of these markets will remain an important indicator for machine tool manufacturers and suppliers monitoring global manufacturing investment.