For Italian textile machinery, 2012 begins with greater stability than the previous year. In fact, in the first quarter of the year, orders are up by a modest 2% compared to the last three months of 2011. According to joint surveys conducted by ACIMIT, the Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers, the overall orders index for the January- March 2012 period shows an increase of 2% over the previous quarter with a value of 91.2 points. Nevertheless, there is a different trend between orders in Italy and those in foreign markets. In the Italian market, the index increased 34% compared to the last quarter of 2011. Abroad, on the other hand, there was a drop of 1%.

"The first quarter results surprised us", said Sandro Salmoiraghi, ACIMIT president. "The increase of orders in the Italian market for the second quarter in a row silenced the prophets of doom who too quickly predicted the free-fall of Italian textiles. There are still textile companies in Italy investing in new machinery and new systems. This is a boost of confidence for the entire Italian textile-clothing production chain".

Despite the strong growth recorded in the domestic market, exports remain the driver for the sector. And so the overall index of orders is suffering a slow down, albeit slight, in foreign markets. "At a time clearly positive for the Italian market, we must record the slow down of demand from our main markets, especially China and India", emphasised the ACIMIT president. "We are paying for the global economic slow down, which has also affected emerging countries and caused many companies who are our customers to stop their investment projects, hopefully only temporarily".