Printing and packaging industries benefit from influx of digital printing platforms across commercial, in-plant, packaging segments.
Analyst Insights
On July 27, 2021, the CDC announced new recommendations for vaccinated people in the continuing effort to control the spread of COVID-19.
Recovery has begun for the printing industry. Sales are growing and confidence is on the rise, but operating cost inflation and labor shortages are squeezing margins. Those are primary conclusions of the second quarter 2021 Print Business Indicators Survey.
The index of current indicators, which tracks trends in sales, production, employment, prices and pre-tax profitability has reached 50.0 for the first time since the research began in April. It now sits at 52.2, which indicates more of the companies we survey report activity is increasing than report activity is decreasing.
When looking at certain economic and industry indicators, it is easy to see exactly when the COVID-19 pandemic began to debilitate business. Fortunately, the print industry was able to adjust and although we remain far from pre-pandemic levels, these same indicators have already shown plenty of recovery progress.
The COVID crisis has changed business and consumer behavior in many ways. But which of the changes are temporary and which are permanent? Which can we ride for a while before they peter out and which must we build into our long-range business plans?