Digital Ink Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The digital ink market is projected to register a CAGR of over 6% during the forecast period (2021-2026).

Due to the COVID-19 impact in the first half of 2020, various manufacturing plants have been shut down, and the demand for digital printing inks has declined. For instance, in Europe, the textiles, apparel, and fashion industry took a huge hit, and the production fell around 26% in the period between April-June 2020 compared to the same period of the previous year. However, the digital printing companies have taken this COVID-19 crisis as an opportunity to innovate their existing business by offering digital products and services to continue business in today’s turbulent times. Thus, a slowdown or disruption in the various manufacturing and industrial activities due to this deadly disease had a short-term impact on the market studied during the forecast period. Rising demand for high-quality graphic material is driving the market growth.

Key Highlights

• The higher cost of inks with less-durable properties and the availability of fewer material options are expected to hinder the market growth.
• Over the long term, the increasing demand for indoor and outdoor displays will drive the market.
• The Asia-Pacific region is expected to witness rapid growth, with the largest consumption from countries such as China, Japan, and India.

Key Market Trends

Growing Demand from the Textile and Construction Industries

• Digital inks have been used to make an impression of interior architectural design through indoor signage and display systems. Designed custom walls and floor graphics can add spectacular imagery and color to interiors.
• Demand from different sectors, like service, commercial buildings, and offices, is augmenting the usage of digital inks for reception and directional signs navigation purposes.
• Ceramic inkjet printing processes have radically changed the manufacturing process of decorated tiles. Consumers are being attracted to customized ceramic tiles for complex, realistic marble images with different patterns for residential applications.
• Asia-Pacific is the main hub for the global textile industry. Asia is expected to remain the global textile manufacturing hub in the next five years, led by countries like China, India, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia. China and India are the top two textile industries in the world.
• Due to the above-mentioned factors, the market for digital printing inks in the segments studied is expected to increase during the forecast period.

Asia-Pacific to Witness Rapid Growth in the Market Studied

• The demand in Asia-Pacific for digital inks has been growing rapidly in recent times. Sectors, such as automotive, textiles, glass, and ceramic tiles, have started adopting digital inks for decorative, signages, and packaging purposes.
• Companies are using vehicle wraps and graphics on their vehicles for self-marketing purposes to grab consumers' attention. Additionally, these vehicle wraps protect automobiles from scratches and dents during minor accidents.
• According to Federmacchine, Asia-Pacific leads the ceramic tiles market around the world. The consumption and the usage of digital inks in ceramic tiles and promotional materials in China are the highest in the region, followed by India.
• Recently, in the packaging sector, manufacturers prefer the usage of printed packages because of the flexibility of digital inks.
• The Indian textiles sector is one of the oldest in the Indian economy. The production of raw cotton reached 35.4 million bales for the fiscal year 2020. The foreign direct investments for textiles in India stood at 3.46 billion USD between April to September of 2020.
• According to the National Bureau of Statistics of China, the construction output value in the country increased from CNY 9.6 trillion in 2010 to CNY 24.84 trillion in 2019.
• China, Korea, Japan, and India from Asia-Pacific have a various number of plastic packaging manufacturing units. The increasing domestic demand for processed foods and the growing export demand, majorly from other countries in the region, increased digital inks usage on printed packings.

Competitive Landscape

The digital ink market is fragmented in nature, with many players competing in the market. Some of the major companies are Wikoff Color Corporation, Sun Chemical, Siegwerk Druckfarben AG & Co. KGaA, Cabot Corporation, and FUJIFILM Corporation.

Additional Benefits:

• The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
• 3 months of analyst support