Bearings Market Statistics, Trends and Segmentation

The global bearings market saw a decline In 2016, due to the tremors in the global industrial sector. It began recovering in 2017, but over the last few years, almost every major bearing manufacturer has also been affected by counterfeiters. Hence, they are now working with channel partners like SFK to solve this issue. This has been happening while established players are facing competition from new manufacturers whose offerings have lower cost structures.

According to the bearings market research, the U.S. manufacturers are also facing stiff competition from the low-cost imported bearings, especially from APAC.

Bearings Market Statistics

• The current bearings market is estimated to be worth around $94 billion. By 2022, it is expected to reach a value of $113 billion at a CAGR of 4.7 percent.

• The region with the highest demand for bearings ( >50 percent) is Asia. This is due to growing automobile production and rapid industrialization in countries of South East Asia like China and India. The entire region is expected to witness a growth of 10 percent by 2020.

• Nearly 50-55 percent of total costs constitute of raw metal prices, whereas 30-40 percent of the costs are a result of labor and energy prices.

• Nearly 21 percent of bearings are sold by industrial distributors whereas 40 percent are sold by original equipment manufacturers.

• At a global level, the OEM (original equipment manufacturer) market contributes about 40 percent to the bearings industry. The industrial distribution market contributes about 21 percent, whereas the aftermarket contributes 9 percent. The automobile sector was an avid contributor as well but showed a slump in the aftermarket demand because of shorter resale and longer life span of bearings.

• High market maturity regions are Canada, Germany, the U.K., the U.S., France, Italy, China, and Japan. MEA, India, and Australia make up the low market maturity regions.

• The bearings market exhibits an oligopoly wherein the top six suppliers contribute to more than 65 percent of the market share. The same market form is seen in the top manufacturing countries, which are Germany, Japan, and the U.S.

Following global trends and awareness, the need for energy efficiency and a higher life span for bearings is rising. This is helping to create new opportunities for bearings manufacturers around the world.

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Bearings Market Future Trends

• While the automobile sector showed a limited decline in demand, overall it is expected to again push the growth of the bearings market. Automotive bearings demand is expected to rise all over the world- from the Americas to Europe to Africa and to the edges of Asia and the Pacific, too. This is due to the increasing vehicular demand worldwide- be they two-wheelers or passenger cars.

• Apart from the automotive sector, other technology-heavy industries like robotics, medical, aerospace, and defense will also demand supplies form the bearings industry. The need for smart, effective, durable, and heavy-duty bearings to meet industry standards for hi-tech, crucial applications will create a new market for the bearings industry.

• The wind energy industry is another lucrative market for the bearings industry. Bearings are the most important components used in wind turbines. They require thoughtful design which is, at once, both solid and economically efficient. Due to increasing awareness about climate change and the resulting solutions to invest in alternate energy sources, the wind energy market is being invested in heavily. There are a lot of innovative projects going on all over the world. Thus, the need for carefully designed bearings will also continue to spike.

It is not only other industries that are actively reaching out to the bearings industry. Bearings manufacturers have also experienced the wild uncertain times of recession. Having learned to not rely on traditional industries only, many distributors are expanding their target markets to include energy, food and beverages, automation, and manufacturing.

Bearings Market Segmentation

The major market players in the bearings industry are Timken, NTN Corporation, NSK Global, Schaeffler Group, SKF, JTEKT.

The bearings industry is segmented on the basis of different criteria.

On the basis of applications, the bearings industry is divided as follows:

• Automotive
• Agriculture
• Railway and Aerospace
• Electrical
• Mining and Construction
• Others

On the basis of the outer diameter of the bearings, the industry is cut up as:

• < 5mm
• 6mm-10mm
• 10mm-21mm
• 22mm
• 23mm-32mm
• 33mm-40mm
• 41mm-45mm
• > 45mm

Finally, the most important classification is on the basis of the type of bearings:

• Roller bearings (split bearings, tapered bearings, others)
• Ball bearings (deep groove bearings, others)
• Others

Roller bearings dominated the industry in 2018 and are expected to continue to do so. The railway and aerospace segment is predicted to stand out for its bearings output due to the increase in global travel and the growing need and concern for sustainable travel options. Emerging economies will be key growth drivers.

Despite a few setbacks in the past years, the future outlook for the bearings industry is overall positive. Not only is the industry expanding from within, but it is forming new associations and aiding in greater problems like climate change.