In both seasonally adjusted and trend terms printing industry conditions were reported to have improved during the September quarter by 3.7 per cent and 1.6 per cent respectively.

This compares to a reported rise of 1.7 per cent in seasonally adjusted and trend terms for the manufacturing sector.

In seasonally adjusted terms printing industry sales were reported to have improved by 2.7 per cent compared to the same period 12 months ago. On a trend basis there was a marginal fall.

Manufacturing industry sales rose by 5.6 per cent in seasonally adjusted terms and by 5.9 per cent in trend terms compared to 12 months ago.

While sales were up, printing industry profits deteriorated during the September 2005 quarter. Compared to the June quarter pre-tax profits fell by 15.4 per cent and were down by 12 per cent when compared to 12 months ago.

On the other hand the manufacturing sector reported strong profit results with a 17.9 per cent surge in profits for the September quarter compared to the June quarter.

Welcoming the improvements in sales during the September quarter, Printing Industries manager of industry and commercial policy, Hagop Tchamkertenian, says it was disappointing that pre-tax profits deteriorated.

“This result could be due to a number of factors ranging from moderating profit levels after the profit surge that occurred during the June quarter to rising costs during the September quarter,” he says.

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