In data released by the US Department of Commerce, commercial printing shipments for June 2016 were down -$58 million compared to last year (-0.8%). On an inflation-adjusted basis, shipments were down -$130 million (-1.8%). 

For the first six months of the year, shipments were up +$421 million (+1.0%). Inflation adjusted shipments for the first half of 2016 were down -$47 million (-0.1%), and are essentially flat with last year.

The second quarter of 2016 registered shipments of $21.63 billion, down -0.6% compared to the same quarter of 2015. On an inflation adjusted basis, shipments were $21.71 billion (-1.8%). It was the first negative quarter since the second quarter of 2014.

The 12-month combination of the second half of 2015 and the first half of 2016 are $86.5 billion in current dollars, up +2.2% compared to the prior 12-month period. On an inflation-adjusted basis, shipments were $87.5 billion, up +1.5%.