Q4 Paper Outlook — On-the-Cheap Sheets

Almost all of the paper makers called attention to rising energy costs, but Badger Paper Mills emphasized this business challenge. The company attributed its quarterly loss to high costs for natural gas and pulp, combined with pricing pressure, especially in printing and writing paper markets. It says expenses for natural gas during the first two quarters of 2003 ran 80 percent higher than for the same period last year.