Flint Group to raise prices

Flint Group is implementing a global price increase of up to 9 per cent on offset and publication gravure inks, coatings and pressroom consumables.

The price rise will be effective from March 1 and larger price increases will also be enacted on specialty products such as silicones and high-performance coatings.

The company says raw material trends worldwide have led to decreased availability, and therefore increased costs, of many materials used to manufacture CPS Inks’ finished products. Flint Group blames stricter environmental standards for raw material suppliers as well as them consolidating and focusing on more attractive industries.

[Related: Ink prices to rise]

Thorsten Schauer, VP, Sales Packaging Narrow Web Flint Group Australia says, "We are certainly aware of the global drive of material costs going up. It will be having an effect in the Australian and New Zealand market."

Bill Miller, COO of Flint Group CPS Inks, says, “Combined, these factors have effected material availability and cost. This has adversely impacted the cost of manufacturing most of our key product lines to a degree that can we can no longer absorb. CPS Inks will be in direct contact with our customers to provide more detail. This situation is unfortunate, but needed in the current raw material climate of higher costs and reduced availability.”

Flint Group has already instigated a global price rise on packaging inks this year along with fellow major producer Sun Chemical. The company said it saw escalated costs in the raw material markets last year, particularly in China where the prices of oil, solvents and key monomers for polyurethrane (PU) resins have escalated. The company also cited a tight supply of titanium dioxide white pigment further driving costs rising.