The Modern Casting 47th Census of World Casting Production showed varied results for the “BRICS countries”—the acronym representing Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, five of the world’s largest developing economies—since the global recession of 2008-2009. While China’s overall production jumped from 31 million tons to 42.5 million tons, the other four countries experienced significant overall contraction. The total tonnage produce by Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa fell from 19.2 million tons in 2008 to 16.9 million in 2012. On a whole, production numbers compared to 2000 were much more positive, with the five nations’ total tonnage jumping from 22.6 million to 58.4 million.
Brazil
Brazil remained ranked the seventh largest producer of cast components in the world, producing 2.86 million tons of castings in 2012. South America’s largest country took a major step back in total output compared to 2011, though, when it shipped more than 3.34 million tons, a decrease of 17%. While Brazil still seeks to recoup losses in the wake of the global economic downturn of 2008, the country produced more than 1 million tons more than it did in 2000.
China
In 2000, China produced a total of 10.9 million tons of castings. Within a dozen years, the world’s most populous country nearly quadrupled its total output, to a total of 42.5 million tons in 2012. The largest gains were realized in gray iron, which topped 20 million tons for the first time in 2012. The proportion of growth by alloy since 2000 has been remarkably consistent, with tonnage totals for ductile iron, steel and aluminum increasing between four and five fold. Malleable iron production has lagged behind, moving from 400,594 tons in 2000 to 600,000 tons in 2012. Copper-based castings, though, grew more than 625%, from 119,937 tons to 750,000 tons.
Far and away producing more castings than any other country, China has seen its growth slow a bit in recent years after experiencing double-digit growth throughout much of the 2000s. China’s total production grew 4.2% between 2010-2011 and 3% between 2011-2012.
What is the methodology adopted for this survey ?
How is the data collected and what is its accuracy ?
Information on each country’s annual casting production information is provided by representatives of the country’s metalcasting industry association or equivalent organization. Each representative maintains and delivers the most accurate information available for each country.