Sales of Czech glass and ceramics producers grew by 8.1 percent to 45.65 billion Kč last year with direct exports of 33 billion Kč sales contributing to three quarters of that figure, according to the Association of the Glass and Ceramic Industry’s annual report.
The highest contribution of 17.34 billion Kč was from flat glass. The segment registered a 12.2 percent growth in sales. Companies from group AGC Flat Glass Czech with sales around 13 billion Kč contributed significantly to the volume.
“The development in the flat glass segment in the coming years will be influenced in particular by construction in Central Europe and the automotive industry,” the association said in the annual report. The highest growth in sales was registered by utility glass producers whose sales increased by 22.1 percent to 4.92 billion Kč.
Sales of ceramics producers rose by 30 million Kč to 4.56 billion Kč and 73 percent of them came from technical and sanitary ceramics.
These positive results were reflected also in employment. At the end of last year, 22,208 people worked in the sector, 1,001 (4.7 percent) more than in 2013. Of the number, 18,532 worked in glass production and the rest in ceramics production. The average wage remained unchanged at 25,383 Kč a month.
“The year-on-year wage development reflects the economic situation of companies in the glass and ceramics industry. A growth was seen only in the group of technical and sanitary ceramics. In the other production sectors, wages either stagnated or even fell moderately,” the association said in the annual report. The highest wages were in flat glass production, of 31,056 Kč a month on average.
The glass and ceramics industry in the Czech Republic is strongly export oriented so it is influenced by global changes, in particular the EU where 70 percent of the exports are targeted. “Pro-export orientation and dependence on a high number of related industrial sectors, to which it supplies products, makes the glass and ceramics industry very vulnerable,” the association warned.
“Not only the development of domestic demand, but also future economic development is important, in particular in Europe which is the biggest export territory for the Czech glass and ceramics industry.”
Exporters will now have to grapple also with the loss of markets in areas hit by war and conflict. Competition of companies from third world countries, in particular the Middle East, is also continuing to grow. In the middle of this year, 108 companies with more than 20 employees were involved in the manufacture of glass and glass products in the Czech Republic.
19 companies produce ceramics and ceramic products, and there are two firms which specialise in ceramic sanitary ware.