World demand for corrugated boxes to approach 260 billion square meters in 2019
World demand for corrugated boxes is expected to increase 3.7% per year through 2019, approaching 260 billion square meters. In developed countries, box demand tends to track overall economic growth and industrial production trends and, as a result, will continue to be relatively slow growing. In developing economies, especially those in Asia and the Africa/Mideast region, growth will be more robust as manufacturers in these areas use corrugated boxes more intensively for product packaging and transportation, in part because boxes are still gaining market share from wood crates and other traditional containers. These and other trends are presented in World Corrugated Boxes, a new study from The Freedonia Group, Inc. (freedoniagroup.com), a Cleveland-based industry research firm.
“In nearly all regions, strong growth in e-commerce will drive corrugated box usage, as will the growing popularity of retail-ready packaging,” says analyst Mike Richardson. Retail-ready packaging has become increasingly popular in more affluent countries because of the time and labor cost savings it offers. Corrugated boxes will continue to benefit from their sustainability, good environmental image, and low cost compared to competitive products. In addition, suppliers continue to upgrade their boxes in terms of durability and further enhance their aesthetics through the use of digital printing.