Corrugated Shipments Down First Five Months

The shipment of corrugated products declined by 1.2 percent for May to 31.782 billion square feet, according to the Fibre Box Association. The figures for the month pushed the five-month shipment total to 155.614 billion square feet, a 2.2 percent drop from the same time last year.

While the overall shipment declined, a promising sign is that certain regions posted an increase between last May and this May. According to the FBA, the North Central U.S. and the Southeast both posted increases for the month. At the same time, shipments from the Northeast posted the sharpest decline, 6 percent for the month.

Along with a decline in shipments, the consumption of containerboard at domestic box plants also declined. For May, consumption stands at 2.405 million tons, a 1.2 percent drop from last May’s figure. The consumption of containerboard over the first five months also is down, 2.3 percent, to 11.8 million tons.

Finally, the inventory of containerboard at plants dipped by 2.6 percent at the end of May to 2.23 billion tons from the previous month. However, the weeks of supply on hand increased from 4 weeks at the end of April to 4.1 weeks at the end of May.