"The key areas of growth in the first half of 2016 was: the higher value areas of the market performed well with high and industrial speed segments seeing output growth of above 35 per cent, as Indian dyers looked to continue investing in new equipment. Non-textile companies also saw the long-term potential of the industry and were willing to invest. Not only has growth in output been high, the increase in physical machinery sales in this higher value end of the market has also been impressive with 52 new models installed in the first half.
In general, India remains a high potential market for digital textile printing with both a large traditional textile market and a rapidly growing economy where investors are looking to drive growth. Increased competition is expected to put pressure on Indian printers and 2017 is expected to be a period of consolidation with growth slowing down to 20 per cent as the market adjusts to its new capabilities."
India’s digital textile printing segment has maintained its double digit growth trajectory through 2015 and 2016. However, growth is expected to slowdown next year consolidation happening in the markets, predicts a WTiN Intelligence study
Following a successful 2015, the first six months of 2016 have also been extremely positive for the Indian digital textile market. High growth across all areas and steady machinery sales, have helped boost output capacity to 54.1million sq. mt. of fabric. This 34 per cent rise for the first half of 2016 is similar to the figures seen in 2015, thanks to continued machinery investment across the sector as the textile industry continues to develop and the economy remains strong.
The key areas of growth in the first half of 2016 was: the higher value areas of the market performed well with high and industrial speed segments seeing output growth of above 35 per cent, as Indian dyers looked to continue investing in new equipment. Non-textile companies also saw the long-term potential of the industry and were willing to invest. Not only has growth in output been high, the increase in physical machinery sales in this higher value end of the market has also been impressive with 52 new models installed in the first half. Most of these higher-end models were from Italy-based manufacturers who are competing fiercely both with pricing and servicing to establish a stronger position in the Indian market. However, we have also seen Chinese manufacturers gaining ground. For Chinese companies offering high-end machinery, India is the primary export market where they have recently performed as well as their European counterparts.
This has also been supported by wider activity lower down the value chain. Looking specifically at the low speed segment, India’s large business base and growing middle class, who are increasingly setting up small businesses and providing a growing customer base, allows entry level digital textile printing to continue to grow in India. Over the last six months, 84 new dedicated textile models operating at lower speeds were sold, allowing the large part of the Indian market to grow by 31 per cent. While the numbers look smaller than in 2015, the price point of such machines is slowly creeping up. In 2015, the majority of models sold were between $10,000 and $25,000 but so far this year, while this price band is still popular, we are seeing more entry level activity at $35,000 and up. Similar to 2015, while Epson DX5 heads remain popular thanks in part to domestic and Chinese company sales, we have seen an increase of 45 per cent in output for machines using less common print heads such as Panasonic.
Looking at the positive activity seen so far in 2016 and the forecasted sales in the second half of the year, our early prediction of 28 per cent growth for the full year looks accurate. However, with a slightly better performance in the industrial segment, we are raising our forecast to 30 per cent for 2016. We still expect a gradual slowdown in growth due to the size of Indian market. Also, certain companies will now be only looking to buy when their traditional rotary machines reach their end of life. This is true for industrial speed machinery. Therefore, in future, sales in high speed segment remains important with a further 20 machines expected to be sold in the second half in this high-value area.
In general, India remains a high potential market for digital textile printing with both a large traditional textile market and a rapidly growing economy where investors are looking to drive growth. Increased competition is expected to put pressure on Indian printers and 2017 is expected to be a period of consolidation with growth slowing down to 20 per cent as the market adjusts to its new capabilities. We expect to see one or possibly two new industrial machines during this year helping to boost high speed production but with high and low speed segments still dominating physical sales.
