Higher ink prices
As the price of raw materials, especially crude oil derivatives, has risen, the cost of publication inks has also risen sharply. Ink manufacturers do need to allow customers to understand the need for price increases.

Mr. Green said, “We have already informed customers that the limited supply of key intermediate materials, the gradual upgrading of global crude oil derivatives prices and demand have had a huge impact on the printing ink market. The rapid rise in crude oil prices has a direct impact on production. The key raw materials for inks, such as middle distillate solvents, ink oils, petroleum resins, carbon black pigments, color pigments, and additives, we have taken the maximum measure to reduce the cost of production and transportation, but these measures are still insufficient. Eliminate the rise in raw material costs."

Mr. Levin said, “The price of publication inks has risen, but this increase cannot be compared with the rising cost of raw materials. Our customers understand that the price of raw materials has risen, but they must face their own prices in the market. Pressure, their market is only now reverting to the printing level of 2000. For the ink manufacturers, the publishing industry is still a highly competitive market, even if this market has been oversaturated, this will further weaken the manufacturers Pricing power.

Newspaper and Ink
With regard to price increases, the price increase of newspapers and periodicals is considered to be entirely justified. A box of typical black newspaper inks contains about 50-70% of oil, carbon black, which is itself cracked crude oil, and resin, all of which are petroleum derivatives. Similarly, the pigment intermediates for colored newspaper inks come from petroleum.

The report shows that naphthalene oil is the main focus of attention in the market. Possible reactions in the market - new formulas, using soy or other oils, or price increases - all change. Flint has claimed to raise the price of cold solid ink by 12% per pound, and Sun Chemical also announced that it will raise prices by 9-12%.

Norm Harbin, vice president of marketing and technology development at Flint North American Newspapers & Ink Co., Ltd., believes that naphthalene oil is a major issue in the newspapers and inks market. Due to the reduction in naphtha production capacity in 2004 and 2005, prices have increased several times. At the same time, not only the base oil, but also other ingredients of the ink product need to be extracted from the oil, so the price of crude oil also seriously affects the price of the ink product. People are developing alternatives such as soybean oil, but their current market prices are at a higher level.

Considering that WTI's price has risen by 116% in the past two years, we can expect that the price difference between the petroleum-based and soyoil-based newspaper printing ink market will gradually decrease.

Mr. Harbin talked about some key trends that are worth noting: "The circulation of newspapers continues to decline. However, the use of color inks continues to grow, and newspaper advertising is slowly growing."

Mr. Harbin also mentioned other trends:

â—† Newspapers save money by reducing the weight and width of paper;
â—† Newspapers have some non-daily publications - free, local newspapers;
â—† The newspaper industry is looking for ways to use more print capabilities, increase production, increase advertising and revenue, which has brought considerable profits to the Flint Arrowlith UV ink system used in cold-set transfer machines.

As XSYS and Flint merged and reintegrated the newspaper and ink market as scheduled, the above-mentioned major changes occurred in the European market. XSYS's black ink and color printing inks for newspaper printing are known under the brands ANI, Trendal, Lindgens, and Newsking, and the merger with Flint will further increase the company's capacity and technology.

Emerging Technologies
The fierce competition in the printing industry has led printers to seek out new technologies such as random dot-to-net technologies and UV inks to increase their competitiveness. Ink manufacturers are also looking for new technologies that have market influence.

Mr. Green said, “The emerging screen printing technology is gradually replacing the traditional screen printing technology. The existing ink system can be used with a variety of screen printing technologies.”

Mr. Levin said, “All printers are looking for new technologies that can reduce costs and help them increase their competitiveness. Some seek higher intensity inks that use less ink to achieve the same color density. Many printers Use grey components instead of prepress technology to reduce the amount of ink used in high color mask areas. The reason that random dot overprint technology is approved by manufacturers is that it can significantly improve low-precision print quality as long as the ink is used properly."

Reducing inventory is another goal pursued by printers. Sun Chemical used a variety of techniques to develop a product line called PrintEasy, which reduces the number of ink formulations printed on various substrates. By designing a wide range of freedom recipes, the PrintEasy product line can print on different substrates quickly and economically while maintaining quality. In addition, the new Rycoline fountain solution has also been added to the PrintEasy product line to optimize new ink printing.

With regard to the new ink products, Flint's Arrowlith UV ink attracted more attention, and the product received the prestigious GATF technology award.

Sun Chemical will continue to invest in research and development, as its customers still expect new technologies such as PrintEasy and Kohl & Madden's new Liberty inks as breakthrough technologies to help them increase their competitiveness.

Levin India said: "Brushers know that even if the cost of ink accounts for only a fraction of their total cost, the performance of the ink is still a key factor in determining the profitability of the printer."

The ink industry continues to develop new technologies and services to help customers. However, the operating costs and raw material costs are still high. Therefore, it is imperative for ink manufacturers to increase the price of ink. (Finish)

Source: Paints and Inks - China Version