Corrugated Boards Market Intelligence

Industry Outlook & Drivers

Corrugated Boards Market Analysis and Global Outlook

• The containerboard market will be influenced by growth in the emerging regions like Asia and LATAM, which is expected to grow around four to five percent between 2018 and 2021. Growth in these regions would outpace the global average of 3-4 percent

• The E-commerce sector will be a significant demand driver of corrugated box, along with the retail ready/SRP trend
• In addition, sustainability factors would work in favor of corrugated boxes, compared to competitive products such as reusable plastic containers
• Corrugates' producers continue to innovate in terms of durability and advancements in digital printing. The “light-weighting” trend is expected to continue and Europe is expected to be the frontrunner in this globally
• Raw material is a major component which accounts for 65 to 75 percent of the total production cost in the corrugated packaging industry.
• Corrugated packaging industry report shows that the demand by end-use industry is processed foods - 25%, board to sheet plants - 13%, fresh food and produce - 9%, beverages - 7%, paper products - 6%, and others - 40%.
• The top containerboard producers for 2017 were International Paper, Nine dragons, WestRock, Smurfit Kappa group, and Lee & Man.

Value Chain for Corrugated Containers 

An integrated manufacturing facility provides more scope to design innovative products, have better logistics solution, and serve customers in a better way. Apart from these, an integrated facility has other benefits which extends to the customers as well. These include: 

• Continuous supply of paper, even during market fluctuation
• The scope to customise products based on quantity and varying specifications as demanded by the customers
• Innovating through the entire supply chain to be more sustainable and cost-effective

Global Corrugates Market

• In 2017, the global containerboard capacity is estimated to be at 186 MMT and demand was at 159 MMT, with demand expected to grow at a CAGR of 3.5–4 percent from 2017 to 2020. Demand growth rates have slowed down due to the uncertainties in some of the major economies globally
• Developing regions such as LATAM (4–5 percent), Asia (4.8–5.2 percent), and Easter Europe (3.5–4.5 percent) are expected to continue to drive the containerboard demand through this period
• Currently, processed food holds about 25 percent of the global corrugated board consumption and would witness growth in the emerging regions, where ‘on-the-go' western type foods are becoming popular.
• The automobile, chemicals, paper and packaging sectors contribute to the overall growth of the industrial and machinery sectors. Corrugated products application for industrial use is prevised to grow at an average rate of 4 percent. This is in track with global industrial production as well as corrugated demand growth

Global Demand Outlook

• Significant demand will be from the manufacturing industry, which requires secondary corrugated packaging for safe transportation of goods
• Innovations in flute types, as well as printing techniques, resulting in high decorative boards, will extend the containerboard's use in folding carton applications
• Corrugated packaging as POS displays will drive the growth of high-end corrugated boxes

Demand by Region

• Rapid increase in demand is expected in the APAC and MEA regions, where growth would outpace the global average
• India and China are expected to witness gain through strong industrial output and consumer product market growth
• China, which surpassed the US in the containerboard market in 2011, is expected to account for half of the global consumption during 2017–2019

Corrugated Packaging Market Overview

• The global corrugated packaging market is fragmented with the top ten players holding just 33 percent market share in 2017.
• Among the top 10 manufacturers, four of them (Nine Dragons, Lee and Man, Oji Paper, and Taison group) are from Asia, four from NA (IP, WRK, GP and PCA) and the remaining two are from Europe (SKG and DS Smith).
• Global and regional containerboard markets are dominated by the recycled variants, except for North America (due to the availability of virgin fiber and containerboard machines, designed to handle pulp furnish).
• Cost of raw material would be slightly on the higher side for emerging markets, such as Asia, as they predominantly depend on imports from the West.
• Labor cost is another key component of board pricing. Labor costs are low in the Asian and LATAM region, compared to NA and European regions.
• Supply-demand is one of the key and foremost drivers of price in the corrugated board industry.
• Energy is a significant driver in determining the final price of the board.

Why You Should Buy This Report

• Information about the corrugated packaging market size, trends, value chain, drivers and constraints, price drivers and global corrugated industry outlook.
• Regional corrugated packaging industry report of Asia, Europe, China, etc. including PESTEL and Porter’s five force analysis.
• Supplier profiles of major players like International Paper, WestRock, Georgia-Pacific, etc.
• Cost structure analysis and major innovations in the corrugated packaging market and best procurement practices.