Compared with the fourth quarter last year, the Chinese paper sector saw obvious signs of improvement in the first quarter, reports Forestweb. Although most Chinese paper firms were still suffering losses in January, most began to see profit and loss balance in February and profit in March.
In the January-February period, Chinese paper mills produced a total of 11.6 million tonnes of paper and paperboard, slipping 5.8%. However, things began to change in February when a single monthly comparison showed 3.8% growth, up 6.0% from January.
January-February pulp production, including virgin pulp and reclaimed pulp, registered 2.2 million tonnes, representing a drop of 22.2% year over year. The monthly rate of decrease in February was 16.0%, with decelerated speed and sequential ratio,which was up 6.0% from January.
In terms of specific grades, sanitary tissue, finished paper products and corrugated paper boxes all showed upward momentum in January-February. In February, most of the paper grades except coated paper saw positive growth in the sequential ratio.
Linerboard was in exceptionally good shape in February. Representing the largest portion of all grades, linerboard's turnaround not only signaled recovery in the paper sector but also in the logistics sector of light industry.
In China, prices for wood pulp, wastepaper and paper products have stabilized, and price relations between raw material and final products have also become stable. Those enterprises that import massively could enjoy chances to further increase their gross profits, due to the better economic situation in China compared with the rest of the world. |
