<B>Domestic Recycled Board Production Continues Decline</B>

The production of recycled paperboard continues to decline. The dip reflects the sharp downtime being taken by paperboard mills throughout the country over the past quarter.

According to the American Forest and Paper Association, recycled paperboard production totaled 1.269 million tons for September, up slightly from the previous month, although down from last September. For the first nine months of the year recycled board production stands at 11.805 million tons, compared to last year’s nine-month total of 12.085 million tons, a 2.3 percent drop.

While recycled board posted a sharp drop between the two years, total paperboard production was down 2.5 percent over the first nine months of the year.

Broken out by individual commodity grades recycled linerboard production fell 4.8 percent over the first nine months, with the annual rate, year to date, standing at 3.873 million tons. For September, the most recently reported month, recycled linerboard stands at 324,000 tons.

Total linerboard production also declined, although not as sharply as recycled linerboard. For the first nine months production is down 2.9 percent, with the annual rate, year to date, standing at 21.169 million tons.

Recycled corrugated medium also dipped for the month and year to date. According to the AFPA recycled medium plummeted 6.4 percent between the two years, with the annual rate, year to date, at 3.779 million tons.

While recycled medium dropped, the other major component of the corrugated medium industry, semi-chemical, increased by 1.8 percent between the two years, with the annual rate, year to date, at 5.725 million tons.

The final component of the recycled board industry, recycled boxboard, posted a modest improvement between the two years. For the first nine months of the year recycled boxboard production is up 0.3 percent from figures the same time last year.

Total boxboard production was up an even better 0.7 percent between the two years, with the production figure, on an annual rate, standing at 15.428 million tons.

The export of recycled paperboard also dipped between the two years. On an annual rate, year to date, the export of recycled paperboard stands at 233,000 tons, a 13.4 percent drop from figures the same time last year.