MISSISSAUGA, ON—Almost 60% of printers expect to see moderate or strong growth in 2009, according to a recent survey of industry executives by Graphic Monthly Canada magazine, PrintCan’s printed sibling.

The survey is part of the February issue of Graphic Monthly, coming to your desk soon.

The optimistic growth expectations are in contrast to forecasts from two leading U.S. economists. Andrew Paparozzi, chief economist at NAPL, is forecasting that print-industry sales will decline by as much as 3% in 2009, after a 2% decline in 2008. Joe Webb, director of the economics and research center at WhatTheyThink.com further stresses that the primary causes of the industry slowdown are structural changes, particularly electronic media.

Other issues addressed in the survey include how printers plan to cope with the downturn, the impact of the declining Canadian dollar, the credit crunch, and investment opportunities.