Paper Prices Could Increase by 40% due to Lack of Supply

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Tuesday - 23 August 2022

Head of the paper division at the Cairo Chamber of Commerce Amr Khedr said that paper prices are expected to increase by 30-40% during the coming period in light of the shortage of supply in the local market.

Khedr explained that this is due to the accumulation of goods at the ports in light of the lack of dollar liquidity to facilitate the exit of goods, expecting a breakthrough in the coming period in the provision of imports.

He pointed out that paper prices rose by about 20% during the last period, with the increase in raw materials prices and shipping costs, adding that the supply of paper in the market decreased strongly as a result of the difficulty of importing during the recent period and the difficulty of managing financing for importing the required items.

The price of writing and printing paper 48/50 grams in rolls recorded about EGP 27,900 per ton, while the 68/70 grams rolls recorded about EGP 26,500, pointing to the high price of a ton of imported paper, reaching an average ton of about 35 thousand.

He noted that about 100% of the covers of magazines and school books are imported, as well as 100% of newsprint and newspapers, noting that about 500,000 tons of notebook paper, booklets and school books are consumed annually, about 200,000 of them are imported from abroad.

Khedr explained that there is no local production of paper covers and newspapers, calling on Arab investors to establish paper factories in Egypt, and this leads to reducing the import bill and opening up great prospects for Egyptian labor.