The market for packaging boards is likely to grow 9-10 percent annually in India, compared with around 4 percent globally.
August 11, 2021
Accelerated demand for packaging boards for online purchases and tissue papers on account of the COVID-19 pandemic, along with specialty papers, will drive growth going forward, said Mr. Bharat Hari Singhania, Chairman, JK Paper Ltd. Besides, Mr. Singhania, who is also president of J.K. Organisation, said that though a gradual unlocking has commenced, disruptions are expected to sustain for some time — as reported in a leading daily.
“India was projected to grow in double-digit percentage growth rates this year but the second pandemic wave has raised downside risks. Whether the recovery materializes soon will depend upon the government’s policy support, faster vaccination and return to normalcy,” said Mr. Singhnia in his statement.
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According to Mr. Sighania, “Uncertainty” prevails following the second pandemic wave that proved more devastating than the first.
While talking about the paper industry in FY21, Mr. Singhania said the economy improved “appreciably” in the second half of the year, reflected in a pick-up in demand for packaging board as the pandemic accelerated online purchases due to social distancing restrictions.
“The emphasis on hygiene increased the demand for tissue papers.”Going forward, we expect that growth will be driven by this and the speciality paper segment, induced by plastic substitution, as the world replaces single-use plastic with eco-friendly paper-based alternatives,” he added.
The market for packaging boards is likely to grow 9-10 percent annually in India, compared with around four percent globally.
“This growth is catalyzed by personal consumption and the growing substitution of plastic products,” the annual report said.
“The outlook appears hazy, and disruptions in the coming months are not ruled out. However, superior export performance and certain end-use segments in the packaging board business augur well for the company and its prospects for the expansion,” it said.
If education institutions restart, there could be a significant positive impact on the writing and printing segment, JK Paper added.
“The company will seek to enhance people productivity, morale and output from the packaging board expansion through prudent people re-deployment,” it added.
Also Read: JK Paper to Set up Corrugated Packaging Paper Plant in Punjab.
“From a long-term outlook, the company is optimistic of India’s per-capita paper consumption potential, presently much lower than the global average consumption average.”Even a moderate improvement in consumption could translate into a substantial increase in national appetite,” it said.
The intrinsic use of paper in education in India is expected to help the writing and printing papers segment grow around 4 percent a year, higher than the global average.
For the last financial year 2020-21, JK Paper’s revenue stood at INR 2,969.15 crore. It was INR 3,254.20 crore during 2019-20.
