German manufacturers of plastic packaging and plastic films are cautiously optimistic about the third quarter of 2025.

Despite ongoing challenges, the economic survey conducted by IK Kunststoffverpackungen, in which 90 companies from the industry reportedly took part, shows a noticeable improvement in industry sentiment after a rather weak start to the year. According to the survey, the situation in the plastic packaging industry is gradually brightening. The so-called balance index, which measures the difference between positive and negative assessments of the general economic situation, rose steadily according to the latest survey: from -66 points in the first quarter to -56 points in the second quarter and -40 points in the third quarter of 2025. According to the IK, the continuous improvement of the index since the beginning of the year shows that the industry has overcome the worst. Improved earnings expectations are also an indicator of this development. Nevertheless, 53 per cent of companies rate the situation as merely satisfactory, 43 per cent as poor and only 3 per cent as good. Although the overall economic situation has brightened, sales and export expectations remain subdued according to the survey: 59 per cent of companies expect sales to stagnate, 22 per cent expect a decline and only 19 per cent expect an upturn. According to the IK, export expectations are showing a similar trend. 66 percent of companies expect exports to remain stable, 26 percent expect a decline and only 8 percent expect an improvement. By contrast, employment expectations are positive: in the third quarter, 73 percent of companies expect employee numbers to remain unchanged, 16 percent expect a decline and 11 percent expect an increase. ‘The positive trend in our industry reflects the incipient stabilisation of the overall economy, as predicted by leading economic research institutes. However, we are still in the early stages of this development,’ said Dr Laura Müller, IK economic advisor, commenting on the survey results. It will take time for the overall economic recovery to translate into concrete increases in sales and earnings for companies.

Sources:

• IK press release (8.7.2025)
• Photo: © IK