The German corrugated board industry has weathered the economic turbulence caused by Covid-19 in the first half of 2020 and is optimistic about the second half of the year.
While the workday-adjusted sales volume in the second quarter was 1.1 percent down on last year’s figure, the volume for the first six months of the year remained stable in comparison to 2019, according to figures from the German Corrugated Board Industry Association (VDW).
The temporary boom in the food retail trade seen in March and April made itself felt through extraordinary growth rates of 4.7 percent and 2.3 percent, respectively, for the association’s members. However, lack of consumer spending and the tight overall economic situation in May and June made the sales volume declined by 2.5 percent and 3.4 percent, respectively, compared to the corresponding prior-year periods.
The VDW is nevertheless optimistic because the economic research institutes forecast that the economy will recover substantially in the third and fourth quarters, e.g., in the area of industrial production, and is convinced that the corrugated board industry will benefit from this upward trend as well.
In contrast, the earnings situation of Germany’s corrugated board industry has deteriorated in the first half of 2020.
