Print industry confidence is expected to remain depressed in Q1 of 2023 according to the BPIF on the back of its latest industry Printing Outlook survey.
The poll for Q4 2022, showed confidence continued to fall in-line with expectations – and has now, for the first time in two years, returned a negative balance. Confidence is now expected to remain at a depressed level for this quarter.
Growth in output and orders was only marginally positive in Q4 2022. The expectation for Q1 2023 is for a slight performance improvement to be realised. Turnover forecast estimates for December 2022 and January 2023 have been downgraded, but some growth is still expected to return in February and March this year.
Average price levels continued to increase for most companies in Q4, though that is no longer expected to be the case in Q1. More printers have been able to hold margins steady but, on balance, cost inflation still outweighed output price inflation to put margins under more pressure in Q4.
Other key findings are that energy costs remain the top business concern for printing companies, and that recent changes around access to finance and credit conditions have been an increase in the cost of finance, and an increase in levels of late payment and bad debt.
In the poll, companies were asked to select their top three investment targets for the next 12 months. Energy cost reduction was identified as a top three investment target by 57% of respondents, 38% selected workflow and automation, and 27% net zero initiatives. 22% of companies reported that management information systems would be a top-three priority, as did 22% for bindery and finishing. 12% of respondents recorded that they did not intend to make any investments in 2023.
Over one-third (34%) of survey respondents reported that they had conducted a pay review in Q4, the resulting average (mean) change in basic pay was 5.2%.
BPIF economist Kyle Jardine said: “The UK printing industry is continuing to recover but it is not finding it easy to maintain this recovery. The wider economic landscape has dented industry confidence; and growing industry turnover statistics mask the challenges in a way that paper, board, and ink consumption statistics do not.”
