Ball bearing: Key market research findings
- APAC dominates the market geographically
- Automotive sector accounts for a majority of the market’s revenue
- Key vendors – NSK, NTN, Schaeffler, SKF, and Timken
Technavio’s market research analysts predict the global ball bearing market to grow at a CAGR of around 6% between 2016 and 2020. The demand for ball bearing stems from the rising investment in railways and aerospace. Growing emphasis on safety, expansion of metro train networks across cities, increasing the length of fast tracks or corridors, and high requirement for wagons and high-speed passenger coaches are contributing to the growth of the railway sector in developing countries. Furthermore, there is also is a high demand for bearings and other precision components used in aircraft engines from the aviation sector. During 2015, the global ball bearing market was dominated by APAC with a market share of more than 45%. The growing use of ball bearings in the automotive, railway, wind energy, textile, manufacturing, and industrial sectors in the region is expected to drive the growth in the ball bearing market in APAC in the coming years.
The new market research report from Technavio presents a breakdown and analysis of the ball bearing segments based on the end-user.
“The development of application-specific bearings for the clean energy industry is an upcoming trend in the market. The emerging trend in eco-shift provides an opportunity for growth in the bearing industry. There are very few vendors that offer bearings designed for the clean energy industry, especially wind power. Suppliers must have broad sales channels worldwide, as the wind turbine industry is just on the verge of large-scale development,” says Anju Ajaykumar, Lead Analyst, Heavy Industry, Technavio Research.
By 2020, the automotive sector will continue its dominance over the global ball bearing market with over 47% share of the overall market. On an average, a passenger car uses more than 100 pieces of bearings to minimize friction-based energy loss and enhance energy efficiency. Sustained economic growth, increased industrialization, infrastructure development, and rising disposable incomes are key factors accelerating the demand for motor vehicles. This increase in the demand for motor vehicles is triggering an increase in consumption of ball bearing in the automotive sector.
The key vendors in the global ball bearing market include NSK, NTN, Schaeffler, SKF, and Timken. The market is mature and is characterized by the presence of a small number of ball bearing manufacturers who occupy large shares of the market. Vendors mainly concentrate on improving the efficiency of ball bearings to upgrade their product offerings. The ball bearing market is highly capital-intensive, making it difficult for new players to enter the market. Existing players are involved in cartels to avoid undercutting each other’s prices, which, in turn, keeps the existing supply stable and also restricts the entry of new vendors. The existence of counterfeit products also poses a major threat to manufacturers, and has induced some of the major vendors like SKF to start conducting consumer awareness programs to educate consumers and retailers about counterfeit ball bearings.
A more detailed analysis is available in the Technavio report, Global Ball Bearing Market 2016-2020.
We can customize reports by other regions and specific segments upon request.
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