According to the World Economic Forum, the construction industry employs more than 100 million people worldwide and accounts for 6% of the global GDP. More specifically, it accounts for about 5% of GDP in developed countries and 8% of GDP in developing economies. Substantial infrastructure needs are expected to emerge over the next two decades, but they will only be addressed if the government increases its share of GDP in infrastructure development. Global infrastructure investment is estimated at $3.7 trillion per year through 2040, and it should be taken into account that the Americas and Africa have the largest infrastructure investment gap compared to other regions.
The scale of the world's construction market is constantly expanding. According to data from the market research company statista, the scale of the world's construction market has grown from US$9.5 trillion in 2014 to US$12.6 trillion in 2020 and is expected to continue to grow to 13.5 trillion in 2021. The US dollar is mainly due to the growth of the global population and the increase in disposable income, and the acceleration of urbanization is expected to drive the growth of the global construction market revenue.
Rapid technological advancements in infrastructure development and growing demand for low-carbon, environmentally friendly buildings are other key factors contributing to the growth of the global construction market. Another factor expected to drive the growth of the construction market is improving economic conditions in developing countries, which leads to higher disposable income for consumers and increased government investment in public infrastructure. In 2020, the global construction market will reach US$12.6 trillion, and it is expected to maintain a compound annual growth rate of 7.4% in the future. By 2027, the market size will exceed US$20.8 trillion.
From 2016 to 2020, the international revenue of the world's largest 250 international contractors showed a trend of rising first and then falling. In 2020, mainly affected by the global epidemic, the international revenue of the top 250 international contractors dropped sharply to US$420.32 billion, a drop of 11.2%. In terms of regional market business scale, the European market surpassed the Asian market to occupy the first place. The total turnover of the 250 listed companies in the region was 105.979 billion US dollars, accounting for 25.21% of the total turnover; the Asian market ranked second, with a turnover of 905.05. Accounting for 21.53% of the total turnover. Followed by the US market, the Middle East market, the African market, and the Latin American market, accounting for 16.20%, 13.21%, 11.48%, and 4.66% respectively.
In 2020, among the top 250 international contractors, Chinese contractors have the highest income in Asia, with a total income of 44.35 billion US dollars, accounting for 49.0% of the Asian market.
A crane is a machine that performs cyclic and intermittent motion. A working cycle includes: the pick-up device lifting the item from the pick-up place, then moving horizontally to the designated place to lower the item, and then performing a reverse movement to return the pick-up device to its original position for the next cycle. There are many types of cranes. The main products include truck cranes, tire cranes, all-terrain cranes, truck-mounted cranes, crawler cranes, tower cranes, mast cranes, cable cranes, and construction hoists.
In recent years, the global crane market has developed rapidly, and the development of the construction industry, transportation facilities, and urban construction has become one of the key factors driving the market growth. In November 2021, the British KHL released the 2021 ICM20 "World's Largest Crane Manufacturers" ranking. The total sales of the top 10 global mobile crane manufacturers in 2021 were US$16.553 billion, a year-on-year increase of 15.30%. China's crane industry has a relatively short history of development. It started with imitation in the early 1950s. After successively introducing advanced technologies from the Soviet Union, Japan, and Germany, and multiple rounds of industrial mergers and acquisitions.
In 2019, under the superimposed influence of increased infrastructure demand, export pull, and stricter environmental protection, China's crane industry achieved steady growth. Crane products have been introduced and new ones have been introduced, and enterprises have accelerated development changes. From January to December 2021, a total of 49,136 truck cranes were sold, a year-on-year decrease of 9.3%. 3,182 units were exported, a year-on-year increase of 54.5%. From January to December 2021, a total of 3,991 crawler cranes were sold, a year-on-year increase of 21.6%; 941 units were exported, a year-on-year increase of 105%. From January to December 2021, a total of 25,563 truck-mounted cranes were sold, a year-on-year increase of 31.4%. Of which 1,605 were exported, a year-on-year increase of 55.7%. From January to February 2022, a total of 407 crawler cranes were sold, a year-on-year decrease of 19.4%; 213 units were exported, a year-on-year increase of 59%. From January to February 2022, a total of 3,506 truck-mounted cranes were sold, a year-on-year decrease of 14%; 319 units were exported, a year-on-year increase of 69.7%. From January to February 2022, a total of 2,908 tower cranes were sold, of which 121 were exported.
In recent years, about 40 construction crane companies have invested in production in China, 28 production companies have been included in the statistics of the China Construction Machinery Industry Association Construction Crane Branch, and there are more than 300 industrial-scale agents and distributors. In 2020, the company’s mobile cranes will rank first in the world, and the sales of thousand-ton wheeled cranes will remain leading. The domestic share of loaders will increase by 2.1% year-on-year. The share of paver and milling machines increased by 4.0%, 10.7%, and 3.9% respectively, and the market share of asphalt mixing plants jumped to the top two in the industry. Pile machinery increased by 24%, and continued to maintain the industry's first position. The share of truck-mounted cranes increased to 60%, and the share of aerial work vehicles ranked first in the industry.
Under the guidance of China's western development strategy, the economic construction of the western region will set off a climax. This is a new market for construction machinery. To protect the ecological environment, the dredging of the seven major river systems in the country and the return of several major lakes to lakes cost tens of thousands The reinforcement of the dyke for a kilometer requires more general engineering machinery and some special engineering machinery (such as long-arm excavators, dredging ships, etc.). Construction of small towns, landscaping and maintenance, forestry development, maintenance of ports, railways, airport expressways, factory production, and other construction or non-construction industries are also increasingly widely using general or special construction machinery. Construction cranes, as one of the main types of construction machinery, will usher in more development opportunities.
