Lisbon, Portugal, 8 Nov – Angola is currently the market with the biggest potential growth for pulp and paper manufacturer Inapa Portugal, and is where the company is posting growth rates of over 200 percent, said the company’s chairman José Morgado.

“In relative terms, Angola is the fastest growing market (…) with growth of over 200 percent as compared to a global average of 4.4 percent,” noted the chairman of Inapa Portugal, speaking to Portuguese financial daily Diário Económico, whilst also noting the downturn in the European markets in which the company operates.

Working in Angola since October, Morgado said that the company would maintain its focus there, and would seek new opportunities in North African markets such as Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia as well as Turkey where paper consumption is substantially lower than the European average.

Whilst in North Africa paper consumption stands at between 20 and 40 kilograms per capita, in Portugal this figure stands at 115 kilograms and in Germany at 200 kilograms.

As well as focusing on emerging markets, according to Morgado the company will also boost its strategy for growth of complementary markets such as packaging and visual communication, which in the first nine months of the year posted turnover growth of 14.5 percent.

Inapa Portugal is the leading Portuguese paper distributor and handles hundreds of tons of paper each day.

The company, which was established in 1965 and has been listed on the Lisbon stock exchange since 1980, is now present in eight European countries and in Angola and in Portugal the company’s portfolio includes paper and consumables solutions for the printing and publishing and office supplies. (macauhub)