Statistics compiled by the National Association of Printing Ink Manufacturers (NAPIM) for the first six months of 2006 showed U.S. packaging ink sales rising 1.1% by volume and 5.6% in dollar value compared with the prior-year period. Ink World magazine analysis attributed the dollar gain largely to raw-material-driven price increases passing through to converters, while overall packaging demand remained comparatively resilient versus commercial print segments affected by economic cycles.
Solvent-based flexographic ink volume increased 3.6% with sales up 12.8%, reflecting both higher unit pricing and steady demand from flexible packaging and film printers. Solvent gravure packaging inks posted even stronger volume growth at 6.6% and sales growth of 9.7%. Sheetfed packaging inks rose 2.1% in volume and 5.3% in sales, benefiting from folding-carton activity despite consolidation among top converters.
Water-based flexo was the notable exception: volume declined 6.2% and sales fell 1.8% in the first half of 2006. Analysts linked part of the drop to corrugated work migrating offshore and to competitive pressure in paper-based packaging segments. The split underscored how solvent flexo and gravure continued to anchor plastic film and pouch printing while water-based systems faced mixed fortunes depending on substrate and geography.
Global packaging ink demand benefited from economic improvement in Asia and Latin America, even as North American printers managed domestic cost inflation. Siegwerk and other suppliers noted folding-carton innovation in high-end segments offsetting corrugated softness, while flexible packaging remained a dynamic growth area for package printing investment.
For flexible packaging converters purchasing ink under annual contracts, the NAPIM figures validated surcharge negotiations tied to pigment, resin, and solvent costs. The solvent-flexo growth line also informed capex decisions: presses configured for solvent CI flexo remained the default for high-barrier film work, even as EB and UV alternatives entered trial phases at major European OEMs.