Complete Story
08/12/2020
COVID-19 Print Business Indicators Research
Source: Andrew Paparozzi, PRINTING United Alliance, August 10, 2020
This is the second in a series of reports NAPCO Research and PRINTING United Alliance have created to examine the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on the printing industry, how printers are responding to the crisis, and how they can create a path forward.
The research is based on a bi-monthly survey that includes commercial printers, graphic and sign producers, apparel decorators, functional printers, and package printers/converters. (A profile of the participants is in Section I)
To measure movement during the crisis -- Has a bottom been reached? Is there movement off bottom? Is the movement accelerating? -- the survey tracks change in sales over the last 30 days rather than over a year ago. (To compare current conditions and pre-pandemic conditions is to compare apples and oranges.)
An index of current business indicators tracks which way sales, production, employment, prices, and pre-tax profitability are trending. A reading above 50.0 means more printing companies report business is picking up than report it is slowing down, while a reading below 50.0 means the opposite. An index of leading business indicators signals what's ahead by tracking work-on-hand, quote activity, production payroll hours, and confidence. A reading above 50.0 suggests activity will be picking up, while a reading below 50.0 suggests the opposite.
Participant comments on current and expected business conditions put the numbers in context. An analysis of the American economy's likely course and what it would mean for the printing industry supplements the survey results.
An expanded report exclusively for the nearly 400-member COVID-19 Research Panel includes even greater detail on where the printing industry is headed, why, and how to make what's ahead an opportunity rather than a threat.
