Global Demand for Ball Bearings to Increase Over 5% Annually Through 2022

Global demand for ball bearings is projected to increase 5.1% per year through 2022 to $40.0 billion, primarily due to increased production of electrical and electronic equipment, machinery, and motor vehicles. These and other trends are presented in Global Bearings, a new study from The Freedonia Group, a Cleveland-based industry research firm.

Ball bearings are expected to remain the leading product type, with 39% of global demand in 2022 because they are:

• less expensive than cylinders
• widely used in an array of inexpensive products with no replacement demand

However, ball bearings have less load-bearing capacity than other products because balls tend to deform more easily than cylinders when under a heavy load. As a result, a significant portion of ball bearing demand is for inexpensive, commodity-type products, limiting overall sales gains due to intense price competition in many markets.

Global demand for all types of bearings is forecast to rise 5.0% per year to $103 billion in 2022, representing an improvement from the pace of the 2012-2017 period. Ongoing advances in the production of machinery and motor vehicles, by far the two largest bearing markets, will continue to drive demand gains. Preferences among end users for higher quality bearings that offer better performance and can operate longer will also promote gains.

Global Bearings (published 11/2018, 330 pages) is available for $6600 from The Freedonia Group. Please link citations to https://www.freedoniagroup.com/World-Bearings.html.