Italian glass continues to capture the interest of the American market. According to figures released by GIMAV – the Italian Association of Manufacturers and Suppliers of Machinery, Accessories and Special Products for Glass Processing, affiliated with Confindustria – ahead of the upcoming Vitrum, the international exhibition dedicated to the glass industry, scheduled to take place from September 16 to 19 at Fiera Milano, the United States has once again confirmed its position as the leading export market for the Italian glass sector, encompassing flat glass, hollow glass, accessories and processing technologies.
Zandonella Necca, GIMAV President, said, “Future trade policies and potential tariffs could have a significant impact on Italian companies’ export strategies and market penetration.”
Thanks to an 11 percent growth in exports compared to 2023, the US now accounts for 12.3 percent of Italy’s total glass exports, generating a value of EUR 226 million. Despite a slight dip of 2 percent, Germany remains the second most important market, with a 9 percent share of total exports. Turkey ranks third, having overtaken Spain (6 percent) and France (5.2 percent) with a remarkable 24 percent increase in 2024, contributing 6.8 percent to Italy’s overall export volume. Other countries also delivered strong performances, with exports to Hungary rising by 50 percent, Saudi Arabia up by 30 percent and Morocco showing an exceptional 94 percent increase.
As a result, 2024 has proven to be a year of growth and solid productivity for the Italian glass industry, which reached a total economic value of over EUR 10 billion, broken down as follows: EUR 2.8 billion in glass processing machinery, EUR 1.42 billion in flat glass, and between EUR 2.5 and EUR 3 billion in hollow glass. 
When it comes to flat glass machinery, the US once again stands out as the largest export market, accounting for 17.4 percent of the total export volume, though growth in this segment has slightly slowed. Turkey ranks fifth with a share exceeding 5 percent. Exports to Brazil and Saudi Arabia rose by 3 percent and 63 percent respectively, while Japan has entered the top 20 export destinations. The report also highlights encouraging trends for Egypt, where exports grew by 10 percent to EUR 6.5 million, and Oman, which saw a doubling of exports (+100 percent).
For hollow glass machinery, the US also tops the list with a staggering 120 percent increase, establishing itself as the number one export market, followed by Mexico (+14 percent) and Turkey (+100 percent). Hungary and Morocco have climbed into the top 10, whereas China (-40 percent), France (-14 percent), and India (-28 percent) showed declining export figures, although they still remain among the leading markets in the sector.
The accessories and auxiliary technologies segment also returned positive signals. Germany emerged as the best-performing market and continues to be the top destination, with a 6 percent increase and a 15.6 percent share of total exports – at least twice as much as any other country. Brazil (+47 percent), India (+20 percent), and the UAE (+3 percent) also saw notable improvements. In contrast, Spain, the US, Turkey and Poland experienced slight declines in export activity, ranging between -1 percent and -2 percent.
Source: USGlass with additional information added by GlassBalkan
