Printing Process Inputs -- Consumables: A Mixed Bag

IT’S STRIKING what a difference a year has made in the outlook for paper and ink. Both are being buffeted by economic and market forces.

Paper companies started 2008 by continuing their string of price increases, but ended the year scrambling to make production cuts fast enough to bring supplies in line with sinking demand. Throughout the year, they also had to contend with the snowballing of interest in chain-of-custody certified stocks.