Total Import and Export Value of Domestic Printed Products, Printing Equipment and Printing Consumables Up 15.9% Year-on-Year in January-August 2021

In January-August 2021, the total import and export value of domestic printed products, printing equipment and printing materials was 15.275 billion US dollars, up 15.9% from the same period last year (see Table 1). Among this, imports and exports of printed products were 10.853 billion US dollars (up 6.9% year on year), imports and exports of printing equipment were 3.513 billion US dollars (up 50.3% year on year), and imports and exports of printing materials were 909 million US dollars (up 31.6% year on year). In the same period, the combined trade surplus of domestic printed products, printing equipment and printing materials was 7.883 billion US dollars (up 7.4% year on year).

Table 1 Import and export data of domestic printed products, printing equipment and materials, January-August 2021

Overview of domestic printed product imports and exports

In January-August 2021, domestic imports of printed products were 1.687 billion US dollars, up 6.6% year on year (see Table 2). Among this, imports of publication printed products were 358 million US dollars (down 33.6% year on year), imports of packaging printed products were 110 million US dollars (up 25.9% year on year), and imports of commercial printed products were 1.219 billion US dollars (up 27.3% year on year).

For major subcategories of related printed product imports: dictionaries and books printed products 296 million US dollars (up 13.2% year on year), periodicals and magazines printed products 50.886 million US dollars (down 81.2% year on year), children's picture books printed products 4.717 million US dollars (up 7.8% year on year), corrugated boxes (cases) 27.826 million US dollars (up 2.2% year on year), non-corrugated folding cartons 41.469 million US dollars (up 16.5% year on year), paper bags 31.898 million US dollars (up 58.1% year on year), office printed products 126 million US dollars (up 15.3% year on year), ticket and certificate printed products 686 million US dollars (up 33.8% year on year), and other commercial printed products 407 million US dollars (up 21.4% year on year).

Table 2 Statistics on domestic printed product imports, January-August 2021

In the same period, domestic exports of printed products were 9.166 billion US dollars, up 7.0% year on year (see Table 3). Among this, exports of publication printed products were 1.240 billion US dollars (up 22.1% year on year), exports of packaging printed products were 4.437 billion US dollars (up 39.3% year on year), and exports of commercial printed products were 3.490 billion US dollars (down 20.1% year on year).

Table 3 Statistics on domestic printed product exports, January-August 2021

For major subcategories of related printed product exports: dictionaries and books printed products 729 million US dollars (up 25.4% year on year), periodicals and magazines printed products 5.018 million US dollars (up 36.9% year on year), children's picture books printed products 494 million US dollars (up 17.4% year on year), corrugated boxes (cases) 1.220 billion US dollars (up 34.2% year on year), non-corrugated folding cartons 1.393 billion US dollars (up 44.7% year on year), paper bags 1.023 billion US dollars (up 37.3% year on year), office printed products 2.000 billion US dollars (down 5.5% year on year), ticket and certificate printed products 78.853 million US dollars (up 180.9% year on year), and other commercial printed products 1.411 billion US dollars (down 36.5% year on year).

In the same period, the trade surplus in domestic printed products was 7.479 billion US dollars (up 7.1% year on year).

Overview of domestic printing equipment imports and exports

In January-August 2021, domestic imports of printing equipment were 1.678 billion US dollars, up 57.5% from the same period last year (see Table 4). Among this, imports of prepress equipment were 40 million US dollars (up 24.5% year on year), imports of printing equipment were 1.470 billion US dollars (up 59.4% year on year), and imports of postpress equipment were 168 million US dollars (up 51.7% year on year).

Table 4 Statistics on domestic printing equipment imports, January-August 2021

For major subcategories of related equipment imports: computer-to-plate machines 12.010 million US dollars (up 56.9% year on year), offset presses 626 million US dollars (up 64.7% year on year), gravure presses 12.352 million US dollars (up 40.5% year on year), flexographic presses 16.434 million US dollars (down 38.4% year on year), screen printing machines 39.748 million US dollars (down 1.6% year on year), letterpress machines 3.309 million US dollars (up 242.5% year on year), digital presses 165 million US dollars (up 22.2% year on year), printing auxiliary machines and parts 600 million US dollars (up 85.1% year on year), book and periodical binding equipment 59.139 million US dollars (up 48.0% year on year), and packaging postpress equipment 37.557 million US dollars (up 65.9% year on year).

In the same period, domestic exports of printing equipment were 1.836 billion US dollars, up 44.3% from the same period last year (see Table 5). Among this, exports of prepress equipment were 104 million US dollars (up 21.5% year on year), exports of printing equipment were 1.020 billion US dollars (up 41.6% year on year), and exports of postpress equipment were 711 million US dollars (up 52.7% year on year).

Table 5 Statistics on domestic printing equipment exports, January-August 2021

For major subcategories of related equipment exports: computer-to-plate machines 28.360 million US dollars (up 23.0% year on year), offset presses 73.777 million US dollars (up 18.9% year on year), gravure presses 39.384 million US dollars (up 77.1% year on year), flexographic presses 44.873 million US dollars (up 20.5% year on year), screen printing machines 63.576 million US dollars (up 63.0% year on year), letterpress machines 31.577 million US dollars (up 58.6% year on year), digital presses 529 million US dollars (up 37.1% year on year), printing auxiliary machines and parts 183 million US dollars (up 73.8% year on year), book and periodical binding equipment 20.853 million US dollars (up 28.1% year on year), and packaging postpress equipment 315 million US dollars (up 40.6% year on year).

In the same period, the trade surplus in domestic printing equipment was 158 million US dollars (down 23.8% year on year).

Overview of domestic printing materials imports and exports

In January-August 2021, domestic imports of printing materials were 331 million US dollars, up 21.5% year on year (see Table 6). Among this: black printing ink 1,262.67 tonnes, 42.690 million US dollars (down 0.6% year on year); other printing inks 5,883.12 tonnes, 157 million US dollars (up 12.1% year on year); water-based inkjet ink 4,880.88 tonnes, 94.403 million US dollars (up 45.6% year on year); PS offset plates 17,400 square metres, 374,000 US dollars (up 6.4% year on year); CTP offset plates 2.7162 million square metres, 11.445 million US dollars (up 224.9% year on year); and flexographic plates 473,300 square metres, 25.599 million US dollars (up 21.2% on the previous year).

Table 6 Statistics on domestic printing materials imports, January-August 2021

In the same period, domestic exports of printing materials were 578 million US dollars, up 38.2% year on year (see Table 7). Among this: black printing ink 1,693.01 tonnes, 8.178 million US dollars (up 51.8% year on year); other printing inks 14,100 tonnes, 71.068 million US dollars (up 38.8% year on year); water-based inkjet ink 15,900 tonnes, 114 million US dollars (up 60.2% year on year); PS offset plates 25.96 million square metres, 67.755 million US dollars (up 20.1% year on year); CTP offset plates 103 million square metres, 300 million US dollars (up 36.3% year on year); and flexographic plates 387,700 square metres, 17.135 million US dollars (up 36.0% year on year).

Table 7 Statistics on domestic printing materials exports, January-August 2021

In the same period, the trade surplus in domestic printing materials was 246 million US dollars (up 69.5% year on year).

In January-August 2021, the total import and export value of goods related to the domestic printing industry continued to grow. Compared with the same period last year, the import and export scale of domestic printed products, printing equipment and printing materials all exceeded the level of the same period last year. Among them, printing equipment performed particularly well (up 50.3% year on year), printing materials also performed well (up 31.6% year on year), while printed products performed relatively moderately (up 6.9% year on year).

In this period, the top five categories of domestic printed products, printing equipment and printing materials with faster import and export growth are as follows:

Imports: other publication printed products (+282.2%), letterpress machines (+242.5%), CTP offset plates (+224.9%), other paper packaging containers (+97.1%), printing auxiliary machines and parts (+85.1%);

Exports: ticket and certificate printed products (+180.9%), gravure presses (+77.1%), printing auxiliary machines and parts (+73.8%), screen printing machines (+63.0%), water-based inkjet ink (+60.2%).

In this period, the categories of domestic printed products, printing equipment and printing materials whose imports and exports relatively contracted are as follows:

Imports: periodicals and magazines printed products (-81.2%), flexographic presses (-38.4%);

Exports: other commercial printed products (-36.5%), office printed products (-5.5%).

If the same period of 2020 found the domestic printing industry in the post-pandemic resumption of work and production phase with imports and exports of related goods at a trough—so that comparison with this year's data shows a large gap (see Table 8)—then how does this period's data compare with the data before the COVID-19 outbreak (January-August 2019)?

Printed product imports grew 1.4%, exports grew 11.5%;

Printing equipment imports grew 25.9%, exports grew 16.6%;

Printing material imports grew 15.6%, exports grew 12.6%.

The above comparison data show that, as of August 2021, the import and export trade scale of goods related to the domestic printing industry has fully recovered to pre-pandemic levels, and the import and export scale of most goods has even grown to a certain extent.

Table 8 Comparison of domestic printed products, printing equipment and materials imports and exports, January-August 2021/2019

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on domestic and international economies and the changes in the international political and economic environment have had a deep-seated effect on the imports and exports of goods related to the domestic printing industry. The structure and regional distribution of imports and exports of domestic printed products, printing equipment and printing materials have already changed compared with before the pandemic.

——This article is reprinted from China Packaging Network (pack.cn). Original link: http://news.pack.cn/show-378440.html