Q1 Paper Outlook — The Price Is Right

While the October numbers are encouraging, it is still much too early to tell when the recovery will come in 2002. There are several factors that will impact paper markets and printers, including advertising, a proposed USPS increase, the Enron bankruptcy and intense industry consolidation.

Especially hard hit by the sagging economy and the terrorist attacks has been the advertising industry, which is undergoing one of the longest slumps in recent memory. This slump has caused a significant drop in the demand for coated stocks, which is expected to continue well into 2002 as advertising makes a slow rebound.