Corrugated Shipments Continue Decline

The shipment of corrugated products continues to decline. The drops reflect mounting problems for the forest products industry, which has been struggling with declining demand and overcapacity.

According to the Fibre Box Association, August shipments stand at 32.905 billion square feet, a 4.2 percent drop from figures the same time last year. For the first eight months of the year the drop was an even sharper 4.9 percent.

All six regions of the country reported shipment declines for both the month and first eight months. The biggest decline for the month is the Northeast, which saw shipments fall 6.8 percent to 4.872 billion square feet. Other regions and their shipment totals are the following: Southeast, down 4.9 percent to 6.282 billion square feet; the East Center, down 1.9 percent to 4.739 billion square feet; North Central, down 2.6 percent to 4.107 billion square feet; the South Central, down 4.2 percent to 7.359 billion square feet; and the West, down 3.9 percent to 5.855 billion square feet.

Statistics over the first eight months highlight an even more difficult environment. The biggest decline was the Southeast, which saw shipments drop 6.1 percent. Other regions also posted steep drops between last year and this year.

The domestic consumption of containerboard dropped 3.2 percent for August to 2.517 million tons. The decline for the month pushed the eight-month consumption figure to 19.422 million tons, a 5.9 percent drop from figures the same time last year.

While shipments and consumption both declined, the inventory of containerboard at corrugator plants held at 2.46 million tons. While the total volume held, the weeks of supply on hand increased by 7.1 percent to 4.5 weeks.