Paper Industry Continues to Worsen

February yielded yet another poor month for the pulp and paper industry with ALL categories sharply down. Uncoated Free shipments were down nearly 20%; Coated Free fell almost 24%;coated mechanical publication declined 37%; and, uncoated groundwood 31%. Producers continue to show discipline by taking down time to match lower demand. Many now think permanent capacity closures will begin to take place. Meanwhile, Uncoated Freesheet prices fell $10-25/ton in February.