According to the survey, with 41% of the interviewees, the number of companies with better turnover expectations has nearly doubled in comparison with 2013. Even in the case of exports, companies seem more confident than at the beginning of last year.
This positive assessment will, however, be affected by rising costs. Raw material became very expensive in December 2013, something that hadn’t been usual until then. Further price increases have already been announced by the raw material producers.
Against this background, the IK Economic Trend also shows adjustments in the prices of packaging for the first quarter of 2014. A further indication of this are record-level energy costs.
German packaging manufacturers must pay 6.24 cents per kilowatt hour for the EEG (Renewable Energy Law) allocation with effect from 1 January 2014, a new increase of almost 20%. This is why the subject of energy efficiency is also important to 99% of the IK members surveyed.
63% of the companies already work with an energy management system and of the remaining firms 83% plan to introduce such a system in the foreseeable future.
From the point of view of the IK, this commitment by the plastic packaging sector in the field of energy efficiency isn’t enough to offset the ‘exorbitant costs of energy’ in Germany. That’s why the new Federal Government is now being asked to implement a market-orientated energy concept which will guarantee private end-users and the industry a secure and affordable energy supply.
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