The global material handling equipment market is projected to rise from USD 255.80 billion in 2025 to USD 414.16 billion by 2034, a compound annual growth rate of 5.5% over 2026 to 2034, according to a new analysis by Maximize Market Research. The firm said 2025 is the base year, 2026 to 2034 the forecast period and 2020 to 2025 the historical period. The report runs to 316 pages, with 125 market data tables and 70 figures.
Growth is attributed to e-commerce expansion, warehouse automation, manufacturing development, supply-chain modernisation and smart factory adoption, the firm said. Demand is rising for forklifts, cranes, conveyors, hoists, pallet trucks, stackers, automated storage and retrieval systems, automated guided vehicles and autonomous mobile robots, according to the market report. Investment in warehouses, distribution centres, automotive manufacturing, food and beverage processing, pharmaceuticals and logistics infrastructure is also cited as supporting the market.
Asia-Pacific is the leading region, the firm said, supported by industrialisation, e-commerce growth, manufacturing expansion and warehouse modernisation in China, India and Southeast Asia. India's material handling equipment demand is projected to increase from 122,000 to 283,000 units between FY2025 and FY2030. Industrial trucks are expected to hold the largest share by product by 2034.
Technologies named as shaping the market include artificial intelligence, robotics, IoT-enabled equipment, predictive maintenance, electric forklifts, automated sorting systems and energy-efficient equipment. Among the companies listed as major players are Daifuku, KION Group, SSI SCHAEFER, Toyota Industries, Honeywell International, Hyster-Yale, Jungheinrich, Crown Equipment, Mitsubishi Logisnext, BEUMER Group, Swisslog, TGW Logistics, Mecalux and Liebherr Group.
Daifuku opened its Tokyo Lab in Japan on 11 March 2026 to work on AI, robotics, IoT and digital twin technologies for automated material handling systems, and in March 2026 introduced the SOTR-F forklift autonomous mobile robot, which the firm said has a minimum turning radius of one metre. Daifuku also invested USD 35 million in 2025 to expand a U.S. intralogistics manufacturing facility.
