<b>Canadian Market Pulp Continues Downward Slide</b>

The production of market pulp by Canadian mills continues to slide. Production for February stands at 683,000 metric tons, a sharp 11 percent drop from the same time last year. The operating rate at Canadian pulp mills for February stands at 91 percent of capacity, compared to last February’s figure of 99 percent of capacity.

According to the Pulp and Paper Products Council, total production for the first two months of the year stand at 1.454 million metric tons, a 10 percent from last year. The operating rate so far this year averages 92 percent of capacity, compared to last year’s two-month average of 101 percent of capacity.

While production  posted a sharp drop, shipments of finished products dropped an even steeper 15 percent for February, while shipments over the first two months of the year posted an even steeper 17 percent drop between last year and this year.

For this February, total shipments stand at 679,000 metric tons, compared to last February’s figure of 803,000 metric tons. Declines were seen in each of the end market regions, with shipments to Japan and to regions outside North America and Western Europe posting the biggest drops, at 25 percent and 41 percent, respectively.

For the first two months shipments to these regions also led the decliners, with similar declines of 25 percent for Japan, and 40 percent for regions outside North America and Europe.