Over the past five years, the Glass Product Manufacturing industry has declined as both consumers and businesses turn away from the use of domestic glass. Substitute goods, such as plastics and metals, have become increasingly popular, and faltering construction levels have exacerbated declines in demand as manufacturers of architectural glass experienced plummeting sales. Furthermore, adds IBISWorld industry analyst Jeremy Edwards, "the industry has been exposed to a greater degree of globalization, including increasing import activity and decreasing export demand." Imports have grown to account for the vast majority of domestic demand. In 2013, 68.3% of domestic demand comes from imports, with the industry's largest trade partners being the United States, China, Mexico and Germany. As a result of these negative trends, industry revenue has declined at an annualized rate of 7.0% over the five years to 2013. Conditions continue to worsen in 2013, with the industry expected to decline a further 4.0% to $1.4 billion by year-end.
The Glass Product Manufacturing industry's decline has caused employment to decrease at an annualized rate of 4.3% to 6,310 in 2013. According to Edwards, "Industry employment is expected to continue falling as the industry remains in the declining stage of its economic life cycle and experiences both declining per capita consumption and a decrease in the number of businesses operating in the industry."
Over the five years to 2013, the level of market share concentration has increased as companies have exited or consolidated trends indicative of an industry in the decline stage of its economic life cycle. Firms still operating in the market, such as Owens-Illinois Inc., Compagnie de Saint-Gobain and Asahi Glass, continue to strengthen their position in the industry in order to achieve economies of scale and increase profit margins. These trends are expected to continue over the next five years as the industry continues to decline.
The industry is not expected to experience growth over the next five years, with revenue forecast to fall further as international competition intensifies and diminishes industry growth. The use of cheaper substitute goods by downstream customers is also expected to continue to plague industry demand. Additionally, the industry is projected to experience increased levels of consolidation over the next five years as major companies acquire small businesses in an effort to increase dwindling profit margins, increase market share and develop greater economies of scale and distribution networks. For more information, visit IBISWorld's Glass Product Manufacturing in Canada industry report page.
