Global Label Printing Projected at US$49.9 Billion: Digital, RFID and Flexible Packaging Convergence Create New Opportunities

Label Printing Market: Current Landscape

1. Output Value Trends

During the 13th Five-Year Plan, global label printing output value expanded at a steady compound annual growth rate of roughly 5%, reaching USD 43.25 billion in 2020. In the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the market is expected to continue growing at a CAGR of about 4%–6%, with total output value projected to hit USD 49.9 billion by 2024.

China remains the world's largest label producer and consumer. Its market has grown rapidly over the past five years: total label printing industry output rose from RMB 39.27 billion at the start of the 13th Five-Year Plan to RMB 54 billion in 2020 (Figure 1), representing a CAGR of 8%–10%. By the end of 2021, it is expected to reach RMB 60 billion, making China one of the fastest-growing label markets globally.

By segment (Figure 2), flexographic printing led with USD 13.3 billion in output and a 32.4% market share. Its annual production growth during the 13th Five-Year Plan was 4.4%, but digital printing is now outpacing that growth. The rise of digital printing is eroding the advantages of traditional label processes such as letterpress, whose share of the key global pressure-sensitive label market continues to decline.

Within digital printing, inkjet is expected to take the lead. Although inkjet expanded quickly during the 13th Five-Year Plan, electrophotographic printing still accounted for a substantial share of digital processes. As inkjet applications maintain high growth, its market share is forecast to overtake electrophotography before 2024.

1. Regional Picture

Asia remained the dominant region for label printing during the 13th Five-Year Plan, growing at 7% annually since 2015. Europe and North America are the next largest markets. Together, these three regions represent 90% of the global label market.

China is far ahead in the global label market, while India's label demand has also been rising in recent years. During the 13th Five-Year Plan, India's label market grew at 7%, noticeably faster than other regions, and this trend is expected to continue through 2024. Africa recorded the fastest demand growth at 8%, though its smaller base makes this easier to achieve. Major market shares are shown in Figure 3.

Opportunities for Label Printing

1. Growing Demand for Personalized Labels

Labels are one of the most direct tools for expressing a product's core value. Personalized brand collaborations and custom marketing can meet distinct consumer needs and significantly strengthen brand influence. These advantages offer label printers new directions and ideas.

1. Flexible Packaging Printing and Traditional Label Printing Continue to Converge

Rising demand for short-run and personalized flexible packaging, combined with the impact of national environmental policies on flexible packaging production, is further blurring the line between flexible packaging and labels. Some flexible packaging printers have already begun taking on supporting label products.

1. Strong Prospects for RFID Smart Labels

During the 13th Five-Year Plan, overall growth in traditional label printing began to slow, while RFID smart labels maintained an average annual growth rate of 20%. By 2024, global sales of UHF RFID smart labels are expected to reach 41.2 billion units. This shows a clear trend of traditional label printers shifting toward RFID smart labels, and early positioning in this area can bring new opportunities.

Problems and Challenges Facing Label Printing

Label printing is a relatively fast-growing and leading segment within the broader printing industry, but the world economy remains in a period of major development and change. Many issues cannot be ignored and must be confronted and addressed.

Most label printing companies currently struggle to attract talent. Key reasons include: employees are increasingly aware of their rights and expect more from pay, working hours, and working conditions, which weakens loyalty and raises turnover; the labor structure is imbalanced. Technology is critical for a company's footing, yet workers with mature skills are now harder to find than advanced equipment, especially in manufacturing-heavy regions. Even with rising wages, staffing shortages persist and cannot be resolved quickly.

For label printers, the operating environment is becoming harsher and more difficult, greatly hindering further development. Under pressure from the broader economy, profits have declined, while costs—labor, company and product certification and evaluation, and environmental treatment—rise year after year. In recent years, the state has strongly promoted green environmental protection and zero-pollution emissions, and high-pressure policies from relevant departments have sharply increased pressure on many companies. As a result, many firms must improve quality and cut costs while also increasing investment in labor and energy-saving and consumption-reduction measures.

Advanced technology and equipment are essential for label printers. To reduce labor costs and dependence on manual work, companies need intelligent upgrades to production technology and advanced digital printing equipment. However, domestic equipment performance varies widely, so purchases require thorough preparation and a very clear purpose—tasks best handled by expert talent who truly understands the needs. Moreover, due to the nature of label printing itself, production capacity is insufficient and all-in-one machines are lacking; overcoming this requires the entire industry to tackle challenges across the label printing supply chain.

In early 2020, the sudden COVID-19 pandemic swept the world, severely affecting the global economy and people's livelihoods. As the pandemic became normalized, China's economy showed gradual improvement and steady recovery, fully demonstrating its strong resilience and vitality. In the post-pandemic era, digital printing equipment has become more widely and commonly used in label printing. Many companies have followed the trend and adopted digital printing equipment, further accelerating label printing's digitalization and expanding the market.

Looking ahead, slower economic growth, rising labor costs, and stricter environmental requirements will continue to affect the industry. Label printing companies should actively adapt to the new situation, use technological innovation to meet new challenges, and strive for new development.

Source:

'Development Opportunities and Challenges of the Label Printing Industry' by Zhang Zheng, Manager of the Marketing Planning Department, Marketing Department, Lucky Huaguang Graphics Co., Ltd.

—Reprinted from China Packaging Network (pack.cn). Original link: http://news.pack.cn/show-378592.html