Despite a slight decline in volumes in 2009, the producers of German aluminium packaging managed to cope relatively well with the economic crisis. Overall, the production of packaging made from or using aluminium recorded a slight fall in 2009.
With 356,600 tonnes of aluminium foil, tubes, flexible packaging and aerosol and beverage cans, the aluminium packaging manufacturers produced some 9% less than in the previous year (2008: 393,000 t).
This figure, which is slightly above the 5% decline in gross domestic product, can be attributed mainly to destocking along the whole of the supply chain. This occurred because the financial crisis brought the reduction of working capital into focus. Turnover in the sector declined in 2009 to EUR2.1bn, which was due in part to lower world prices for aluminium.
“After a good year in 2008, the producers of aluminium packaging still managed to do reasonably well last year despite the global economic crisis,” explains Stefan Glimm, executive director of Gesamtverband der Aluminiumindustrie e.V. (GDA) in Düsseldorf. “In 2010 our sector is expecting a slight upward trend similar to that of the general economic forecasts,” he adds.