MARKET FACTS

• Globalisation has leveled the competitive playing fields between the industrial and emerging market countries where competitors have an equal opportunity to sell their products in a free market without restrictions.
• India ranks amongst the top 15 global consuming countries (over 6 Metric Tonnes (MT)/annum).
• With 10 per cent growth in per capita consumption in paper over the last one year, India has emerged as the fasted growing paper market in the world from 7.5 kg per capita consumption in 2007-08, the figure has gone up to 8.3 kg. “Pulp and paper industry is growing rapidly with an estimated CAGR (Compounded Annual Growth Rate) of 7-8% projected over the next decade.
• The Indian paper industry accounts for about 1.6% of the world’s production of paper and paperboard. The estimated turnover of the industry is Rs. 25,000 core (USD 5.95 billion) approximately.
• The Indian consumption stands at 5.4 kg/ capita as compared to world’s average of 52kg/capita and Asian average at 38 kg/capita. The comparative clearly defines the magnitude and scale due for advancement.
• The daunting issue that needs to be addressed is the shortage of raw material in order to bridge the demand and supply gap, projected at 15 million tones by 2015 and 20 million tones by 2020.
• The government has announced Customs duty exemptions for the newspaper and magazine publishing industry, which has been hit by the current economic slowdown.
• In a notification, the Finance Ministry exempted newsprint as well as uncoated paper used for printing of newspapers from Customs duty. It also exempted light weight coated paper used for printing magazines from the duty.
• In order to encourage publishers of foreign newspapers like the Wall Street Journal, The Independent and several others to start the facsimile editions of their international editions in India, the government has allowed up to 100 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in the segment.
• Indian Paper industry has evolved into Agro-based industry from its earlier character of a forest-based industry
• India has 660 paper mills apparently 38 mills are responsible for 60% of total production. This is a very strong indicator that investment and technology is needed for upgradation of existing mills.
• The Central Research Institute for Jute and Allied Industries has been requested to bring the technology for manufacturing newsprint using jute.
• Indian patterns of demand have changed with the buying power of the emerging middle class and a more rapid increase in demand for quality value added products.
• India is a fast-growing market. It is among the top ten markets, bigger than China. This is not really because the Chinese market for serious non-fiction in English is small than that of India. It is just that rampant piracy takes off a huge chunk of that market, leaving the official market small than India’s. In conformity with the perceived comparative advantage of the two countries, while China is entrusted with the physical production of books, the pre-print processing is outsourced to India on a large scale.
• There is ample space for the paper producers, equipment and technology suppliers and more so for the trade players, to draw an effective strategy to chart aggressive growth.
• No doubt the inevitably effects of economic slow down on Paper Industry has slowly started showing up. However, several perceptible key drivers of growth capable of propelling the Indian paper industry are still very much in place and there is ample space for the paper producers, equipment and technology suppliers and more so for the trade players to draw an effective strategy to chart aggressive growth.