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UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

This report was prepared principally by

Vincent Honnold

Animal and Forest Products Branch

Agriculture and Forest Products Division

Vern Simpson

Robert A. Rogowsky

Address all communications to

Secretary to the Commission

United States International Trade Commission

Washington, DC 20436

COMMISSIONERS

Deanna Tanner Okun, Vice Chairman

Stephen Koplan, Chairman

Lynn M. Bragg

Marcia E. Miller

Jennifer A. Hillman

Thelma J. Askey

Director of Industries

Director of Operations

www.usitc.gov
 

1

 The information and analysis provided in this report are for the purposes of this report only. 

Nothing in this report should be construed to indicate how the Commission would find in an

investigation conducted under statutory authority covering the same or similar subject matter.

i

PREFACE

In 1991 the United States International Trade Commission initiated its current Industry and

Trade Summary series of informational reports on the thousands of products imported into

and exported from the United States. Each summary addresses a different

commodity/industry area and contains information on product uses, U.S. and foreign

producers, and customs treatment. Also included is an analysis of the basic factors affecting

trends in consumption, production, and trade of the commodity, as well as those bearing on

the competitiveness of U.S. industries in domestic and foreign markets.1

This report on newsprint covers the period 1994-99. Listed below are the individual summary

reports published to date on the agriculture and forest product sectors.

USITC

publication Publication

number date Title

2459 November 1991 ........... Live Sheep and Meat of Sheep

2462 November 1991 ........... Cigarettes

2477 January 1992 ............. Dairy Produce

2478 January 1992 ............. Oilseeds

2511 March 1992 .............. Live Swine and Fresh, Chilled, or

Frozen Pork

2520 June 1992 ................ Poultry

2544 August 1992 .............. Fresh or Frozen Fish

2545 November 1992 ........... Natural Sweeteners

2551 November 1992 ........... Newsprint

2612 March 1993 .............. Wood Pulp and Waste Paper

2615 March 1993 .............. Citrus Fruit

2625 April 1993 ............... Live Cattle and Fresh, Chilled, or

Frozen Beef and Veal

2631 May 1993 ................ Animal and Vegetable Fats and Oils

2635 June 1993 ................ Cocoa, Chocolate, and Confectionery

2636 May 1993 ................ Olives

2639 June 1993 ................ Wine and Certain Fermented Beverages

2693 October 1993 ............. Printing and Writing Paper

2702 November 1993 ........... Fur Goods

2726 January 1994 ............. Furskins

2737 March 1994 .............. Cut Flowers

2749 March 1994 .............. Paper Boxes and Bags

2762 April 1994 ............... Coffee and Tea
ii

PREFACE—Continued

USITC

publication Publication

number date Title

2859 May 1995 ................ Seeds

2865 April 1995 ............... Malt Beverages

2875 May 1995 ................ Certain Fresh Deciduous Fruits

2898 June 1995 ................ Certain Miscellaneous Vegetable

Substances and Products

2917 October 1995 ............. Lumber, Flooring, and Siding

2918 August 1995 .............. Printed Matter

2928 November 1995 ........... Processed Vegetables

3015 February 1997 ............ Hides, Skins, and Leather

3020 March 1997 .............. Nonalcoholic Beverages

3022 April 1997 ............... Industrial Papers and Paperboards

3080 January 1998 ............. Dairy Products

3083 February 1998 ............ Canned Fish, Except Shellfish

3095 March 1998 .............. Milled Grains, Malts, and Starches

3096 April 1998 ............... Millwork

3145 December 1998 ............ Wool and Related Animal Hair

3148 December 1998 ............ Poultry

3171 March 1999 .............. Dried Fruits Other Than Tropical

3268 December 1999 ............ Eggs

3275 January 2000 ............. Animal Feeds
iii

CONTENTS

Page

Preface ................................................................ i

Abstract .............................................................. 1

Introduction ......................................................... 3

U.S. industry profile ............................................... 4

Number of firms, geographic distribution, and integration .......................... 4

Employment, labor intensity and skills, and productivity ........................... 5

Marketing methods and pricing practices ...................................... 6

Special factors affecting the industry ......................................... 7

Globalization ........................................................... 8

U.S. market .......................................................... 9

Consumer characteristics and factors affecting demand ............................ 9

Consumption ........................................................... 10

Production ............................................................. 12

U.S. trade ............................................................. 12

Overview .............................................................. 12

U.S. imports .......................................................... 14

Principal suppliers and import levels ...................................... 14

U.S. trade measures .................................................. 16

U.S. exports .......................................................... 17

Principal markets and export levels ....................................... 17

Foreign trade measures ................................................ 19

Foreign industry profile .......................................... 19

Overview of world market ................................................. 19

Market profiles ......................................................... 24

Canada ............................................................ 24

Japan .............................................................. 26

European Union ...................................................... 27

Korea ............................................................. 29
iv

CONTENTS—Continued

Page

Appendix

A. Explanation of tariff and trade agreement terms .................................. A-2

Figures

1. U.S. newsprint industry: Principal raw materials, producer types, major

products, and principal consumers ............................................ 5

2. Newsprint: Share of world production by selected countries and the European

Union, 1998 ............................................................ 20

3. Newsprint: Share of world demand by selected countries and regions, 1998 ............... 22

4. Newsprint: Share of world exports by major exporting countries, 1998 .................. 23

Tables

1. Newsprint: U.S. shipments, exports of domestic merchandise, imports for

consumption, and apparent U.S. consumption, 1995-99 (in quantity) ................. 11

2. Newsprint: U.S. shipments, exports of domestic merchandise, imports for

consumption, and apparent U.S. consumption, 1995-99 (in value) ................... 11

3. Newsprint: U.S. exports of domestic merchandise, imports for consumption,

and merchandise trade balance, by selected countries, 1995-99 ..................... 13

4. Newsprint: U.S. imports for consumption, by principal sources, 1995-99 ............... 15

5. Newsprint: Harmonized tariff schedule subheading; description; U.S. 

column 1 rate of duty as of Jan. 1, 2000; U.S. exports, 1999; and U.S.

imports, 1999 .......................................................... 16

6. Newsprint: U.S. exports of domestic merchandise, by principal markets, 1995-99 ......... 18

7. Newsprint: Production by major producing countries, 1994-98 ....................... 20

8. Newsprint: Canadian exports, by principal markets, 1994-98 ........................ 26
1

 ABSTRACT

This summary addresses trade and industry conditions for the newsprint industry

for the period 1994-99. Newsprint is paper used principally in the production of

newspapers.

• In recent years, U.S. newsprint producers have taken steps to maintain their

competitiveness in the U.S. and foreign markets. Producers have closed highcost capacity; undertaken capital-spending programs to reduce costs and to

increase productivity and product quality; and bought foreign newsprint mills

to gain access to other newsprint markets. The United States has traditionally

been a large importer of newsprint because newsprint capacity has fallen

short of domestic demand.

• U.S. shipments of newsprint rose from 6.4 million metric tons (mmt) in 1995

to 6.5 mmt (valued at $3.4 billion) in 1999. During this same period,

newsprint imports declined from 7.1 mmt to 6.8 mmt; import penetration fell

from 56 percent in 1995 to 54 percent in 1999. Canada accounted for more

than 90 percent of U.S. newsprint imports during 1995-99. Other suppliers

included Korea, Russia, and Indonesia. Leading markets for U.S. newsprint

exports were Japan, Mexico, and Brazil. In 1999, newsprint exports

accounted for 11 percent of U.S. newsprint shipments.

• Daily newspapers account for almost 80 percent of newsprint demand in the

United States. Newspapers’ demand for newsprint is a function of their

circulation and their advertising revenues, which have faced pressure from

alternative media such as television, radio, and magazines for many years.

The rapid emergence of the Internet as a new source of information and

advertising poses further challenges to newspapers and hence to demand for

newsprint in the United States.

• Canada is the world’s largest producer and exporter of newsprint. The United

States is the second-largest newsprint producer; other major producers

include Japan, Sweden, Korea, and Germany. The United States is the

world’s largest consumer of newsprint, accounting for almost one-third of

world demand in 1998. The European Union and Japan accounted for 25

percent and 11 percent, respectively, of world newsprint demand in 1998.

• Imports of newsprint enter the United States free of duty. Newsprint tariffs

in major U.S. export markets are the same or higher than the U.S. level.

Japan and Mexico, the two largest U.S. export markets, allow duty-free entry

for U.S. newsprint.

 

1

 Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (1999), ch. 48, note 3.

 

2

 Standard basis weights for U.S. newsprint range from 24 lb. (39.5 g/m2) to 35 lb. (56.9

g/m2). Basis weight is the weight in pounds of 500 sheets of newsprint, each 24 by 36 inches.

3

INTRODUCTION

This newsprint summary covers the structure of the U.S. newsprint industry, the U.S. market

for newsprint, trade in newsprint, and major foreign producers of newsprint. Appendix A

explains tariff and trade agreement terms. The summary generally covers the period 1994

through 1999.

Newsprint is a relatively low-cost, low-quality printing paper used primarily in the publication

of newspapers. It is an uncoated grade of paper made from mechanical pulp, deinked pulp,

or various combinations of mechanical pulp, deinked pulp, and chemical pulp. The

Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States defines newsprint as “...uncoated paper of

a kind used for the printing of newspapers, of which not less than 65 percent by weight of the

total fiber content consists of wood fibers obtained by a mechanical or chemimechanical

process...weighing not less than 40 g/m2 and not more than 65 g/m2.”1 

In the United States, more newsprint paper is produced than any other grade of paper. U.S.-

produced newsprint usually has a standard basis weight of 30 lb. (48.8 g/m2).2 In recent years,

U.S. newsprint producers have shifted to greater use of recycled fiber (old newspapers and

magazines) in the production of newsprint in response to pressure from State and local

governments and newspaper publishers to increase the recycled content of newsprint.

U.S. shipments of newsprint increased from 6.4 mmt in 1995 to 6.5 mmt in 1999; apparent

U.S. consumption of newsprint fluctuated during the period and in 1999 was slightly below

consumption in 1995. The United States is the world’s second-largest producer of newsprint,

accounting for 18 percent of world newsprint production in 1998. It is the largest consumer

of newsprint in the world, accounting for almost one-third of worldwide newsprint demand in

1998. Demand for newsprint in the United States, however, far outstrips domestic production

capacity, and consequently the country depends heavily upon imports. During 1995-99,

imports as a share of U.S. apparent consumption ranged from 53 percent to 56 percent.

Canada is the largest supplier of newsprint to the United States; in 1999, newsprint imports

from Canada accounted for 94 percent of total U.S. newsprint imports.

The production of newsprint is a complex, capital-intensive process involving trees, old

newspapers, old magazines, chemicals, water, skilled labor, and expensive machinery. Trees

are harvested, cut into short lengths, debarked, and chipped. The wood chips are broken down

into their component parts, principally cellulose fibers and hemicellulose fibers bound together

by lignin, usually through a mechanical process to produce pulp, the intermediate product in

the manufacture of newsprint. Old newspapers and old magazines are recovered and returned

to a paper mill where they are broken down into fibers through a mechanical process.

Contaminants and ink are removed from the fibers through a series of mechanical and

chemical processes (deinking). The pulp produced from wood chips (virgin fiber) and from

recycled newspapers and magazines (recycled fiber) is typically bleached (whitened). The

pulp, or furnish, is refined, combined with chemicals, and then diluted with water to a
 

3

1999 Lockwood-Post’s Directory of the Pulp, Paper and Allied Trades, edited by Harry Dyer

(San Francisco: Miller Freeman, Inc. 1998).

 

4 Pulp & Paper 1999 North American Factbook, edited by Joyce Routson (San Francisco: 

Miller Freeman, Inc. 1998), pp. 272-273. 

 

5

1999 Lockwood-Post’s Directory of the Pulp, Paper and Allied Trades, edited by Harry Dyer

(San Francisco: Miller Freeman, Inc. 1998).

 

6

 Canadian Pulp and Paper Association, Newsprint Data 1999, Aug. 1999.

 

7

 “U.S. Capacity Growth Lowest in 40 Years,” Pulp & Paper, Feb. 1999, p. 17.

4

consistency (of solids) of about 0.5 percent. The furnish is now ready to be made into paper

on the paper machine. It flows onto a moving wire screen, and as water is drained off, the

fibers begin to adhere to each other and the continuous paper web (sheet) begins to take form.

Additional water is removed from the paper web by passing it through a series of heavy

rollers, pressing out moisture and then through large drying cylinders. The dried paper sheet

is wound onto a reel and transferred to a rewinder where it is cut into paper rolls of smaller

widths, ready for shipment to customers.

 

U.S. INDUSTRY PROFILE

The Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) category for newsprint is 26211, and the North

American Industry Classification System (NAICS) category for newsprint is 3221221. The

structure of the newsprint industry in the United States (principal raw materials, producer

types, major products, and principal consumers) is illustrated in figure 1.

Number of Firms, Geographic Distribution, and Integration

In 1999, there were approximately 24 establishments in the United States that produced

newsprint, 20 of which were in the southern and western regions of the country.3 Bowater Inc.

is the largest U.S. newsprint producer and one of the largest producers in the world. SP

Newsprint Co., North Pacific Paper Corp., and Brant-Allen Industries are other significant

newsprint producers. Some U.S. newsprint firms only produce newsprint while others produce

a variety of other paper grades. Virtually all U.S. newsprint operations are integrated with

virgin and/or recycled pulp operations. In an effort to ensure adequate supplies of newsprint,

many of the major U.S. daily newspaper publishers traditionally have owned, partially or

wholly, some newsprint capacity in the United States. Although the extent of this ownership

has declined in recent years, it remains significant.4 Calhoun Newsprint Co., in Calhoun

Tennessee, is a joint venture between Bowater Inc. and the Newhouse newspaper group;

Ponderay Newsprint Co., in Usk, Washington, is a partnership between Bowater Pulp and

Paper Canada Inc. and five newspaper publishers; SP Newsprint Co., in Dublin, Georgia, is

a joint venture of Knight Ridder Inc., Cox Enterprises Inc., and Media General Inc.5

Newsprint capacity in the United States in recent years has been flat, increasing by only 2

percent between 1994 and 1998.6 No major change in capacity is forecast over the next few

years because any new capacity will likely be offset by capacity reductions elsewhere.7
 

8

 U.S. Department of Commerce, 1997 Economic Census Newsprint Mills, 1999.

5

Figure 1

U.S. newsprint industry: Principal raw materials, producer types, major products, and

principal consumers

U.S. Newsprint Industry

Principal

 raw materials

Producer

types

Major

products 

Principal

consumers

• Pulpwood

• Wood chips

• Sawmill residues

• Old newspapers

• Old magazines

• Chemicals

• Integrated pulp

 and paper mills

• Paper converters

• Standard newsprint

• Newsprint specialties

• Newspaper publishers

• Commercial printers

• Merchants/Distributors

Source: Prepared by the staff of the USITC.

Employment, Labor Intensity and Skills, and Productivity

The production of newsprint is capital-intensive, requiring expensive and complex pulp and

paper-making equipment. The production process is highly automated with equipment such

as computers, sensors, flow meters, and test equipment that monitor output, maintain quality,

and troubleshoot. A typical newsprint mill may use a variety of software programs to assist

with inventory control, purchasing, preventive maintenance, production scheduling, invoice

tracking, quality control, billing, and order entry. The labor force at a newsprint mill must be

highly skilled and trained to keep all the equipment running properly and to understand and

utilize all the benefits of software programs. In 1997, employment at U.S. newsprint mills

totaled 9,562, of which 7,347 were production workers. The average hourly wage of these

production workers was $25.01.8

The increased use and sophistication of process control devices and software programs

(process automation) in the paper-making process in the past few years have helped newsprint

mills to increase their productivity and to improve product quality. To continue these trends,

mills are counting on further advancements in process automation. One such advancement

involves the development of intelligent control devices that will enable mills to improve

product quality and productivity, to reduce off grade output, to solve certain production-
 

9

 Rob Ryan, “Process Automation: Science Fiction Becomes Reality,” PIMA’s Papermaker,

Sep. 1999.

 

10 Sara Scharpf, “Mills, Chemical Suppliers Team Up in New Service Partnerships,” PIMA’s

Papermaker, June 1999.

 

11 Pulp & Paper 1999 North American Factbook, edited by Joyce Routson (San Francisco: 

Miller Freeman, Inc. 1998), pp. 283-284.

 

12 Ibid.

 

13 Ibid., pp. 277-286. 

 

14 Ibid.

6

related problems, and even to predict equipment breakdowns.9 Mills have also been cutting

their technical, research, and development staffs and increasingly turning to their suppliers for

technical assistance as well as involving them more closely in the papermaking process.10 

Marketing Methods and Pricing Practices

The largest U.S. consumers of newsprint are daily newspapers, and they usually purchase

directly from newsprint producers on the basis of long-term supply contracts, with prices

negotiated every month. Daily newspapers negotiate aggressively on price and attempt to

obtain the same price as their competitors.11 Newsprint producers also sell newsprint to

commercial printers and to merchants/distributors. Some daily newspapers and commercial

printers also purchase newsprint on the spot market when excess newsprint supply has pushed

prices lower. The great majority of newsprint, however, is sold under long-term contracts.12

The U.S. newsprint market can be very competitive and prices fluctuate significantly at times.

Fluctuation is based upon strength of demand, startup of new newsprint capacity, strikes at

newsprint mills, and willingness of newsprint producers to cut production in times of excess

supply.13 There are separate newsprint prices for the U.S. west and the U.S. east, with

newsprint demand in the west generally supplied by mills in the Western United States and

British Columbia, and newsprint demand elsewhere generally supplied by mills in the

Southern United States and Eastern Canada. Newsprint prices in these two areas follow the

same trend; the difference in prices is small. Producers maintain list prices for newsprint but

usually sell at a discount to the list price. The largest purchasers tend to receive a bigger

discount off the list price than smaller purchasers. Price increases for newsprint are typically

announced by one producer, with other producers usually following suit; whether these price

increases actually take hold is a function of newspapers’ resistance to the price hikes and the

willingness of newsprint producers to hold the line or to back down.14 
 

15 Ibid., pp. 288-290. 

 

16 Ibid.

 

17 Ibid.

 

18 Canadian newsprint mills, which are heavily dependent upon the U.S. market, have also

responded to the increased demand for recycled content newsprint by investing in deinking

capacity. Today most Canadian newsprint producers are able to produce newsprint with some

recycled content.

 

19 Pulp & Paper 1999 North American Factbook, edited by Joyce Routson (San Francisco: 

Miller Freeman, Inc. 1998), p. 288. In addition to newsprint, old newspapers are also used to

make tissue, containerboard, and printing and writing paper. 

7

Special Factors Affecting the Industry

A shortage of landfill space and subsequent increase in the cost of garbage collection in some

areas of the United States in the mid- to late-1980s led to efforts by consumers and local and

State Governments to reduce the amount of garbage going into landfills by developing

recycling programs for certain materials, including newspapers. The volume and bulkiness of

newspapers made them a natural target for recycling efforts. Many States, beginning with

Florida and California, have passed laws mandating the use of recycled newsprint by

newspaper publishers. Other States have developed voluntary rules for the amount of recycled

content in newsprint. In California, newspaper publishers are required to use newsprint with

an average recycled content of 50 percent; in Texas and in Illinois, publishers are required to

use newsprint with an average recycled content of 30 percent and 28 percent, respectively. In

New York, there is a voluntary recycled content of 40 percent. Twelve States currently have

mandatory recycling requirements and twelve States have voluntary recycling requirements.15

Newspaper publishers throughout the country responded rapidly to the drive for recycled

newsprint, in part out of environmental concern and in part to forestall attempts at the Federal

level to require recycled content. Publishers pressured newsprint producers to use less virgin

fiber and more recycled fiber in the manufacture of newsprint.16 Over three-quarters of the

newsprint purchased by Gannett Co. Inc., a large U.S. publisher of daily newspapers, has

some recycled content. The newsprint purchased by Knight Ridder, another large daily

newspaper publisher, has an average recycled content of nearly 40 percent. U.S. newsprint

producers, in turn, responded to the increased demand for recycled newsprint by spending

millions of dollars to build deinking capacity and to acquire all the other equipment to convert

old newspapers into newsprint.17 Producers were aided in this transition by advances in

deinking technology and by the cost competitiveness of recycled fiber with that of virgin fiber.

Today, most U.S. newsprint producers are able to produce newsprint with some amount of

recycled content. A few produce newsprint with 100% recycled content.18 The growth in

newspaper recycling activity in the United States has been considerable. The volume of old

newspapers recovered and recycled almost doubled between 1987 and 1997, and in 1997

almost two-thirds of the newsprint consumed in the country was recovered and recycled.19
 

20 “Southeast to Buy Newsprint Mill,” Pulp & Paper, Nov. 1999, p. 17.

 

21 “Stone Casts Off Newsprint,” PIMA’s Papermaker, Nov. 1998, p. 15.

 

22 Charles Swann, “Bowater: Going for Its Goals,” PIMA’s Papermaker, June 1999.

 

23 Karl Jensen, “With Major Recovery Elusive, Mills Focus on Improving Performance,” Pulp

& Paper, Aug. 1999.

 

24 Charles Swann, “Bowater: Going for Its Goals,” PIMA’s Papermaker, June 1999;

“Southeast to Buy Newsprint Mill,” Pulp & Paper, Nov. 1999, p. 17.

 

25 In 1976, Nippon Paper Industries Co. Ltd. of Japan established a joint-venture newsprint

mill with Weyerhaeuser Co. in Washington. 

 

26 1999 Lockwood-Post’s Directory of the Pulp, Paper and Allied Trades, edited by Harry

Dyer (San Francisco: Miller Freeman, Inc. 1998).

8

Globalization

In the past few years, the U.S. newsprint industry has experienced rapid change as producers

have taken significant steps to maintain their competitiveness in the U.S. market and to take

advantage of growing opportunities in foreign markets. U.S. producers have bought and sold

newsprint capacity, shut down high cost capacity, undertaken capital investment programs,

and invested in foreign mills. In late 1999, SP Newsprint Co., a producer with one mill in

Georgia, purchased a large newsprint mill in Oregon to give it access to the West Coast

market as well as to increase its overall share of the U.S. market.20 Stone Container Corp. sold

one of its newsprint mills to a Canadian newsprint producer as part of a strategy to exit the

newsprint business and to concentrate on other paper grades.21 In 1998, Bowater Inc. bought

Avenor Inc., a large Canadian producer, whose assets included three newsprint mills in

Canada and partial ownership of a newsprint mill in Washington. During 1998, Bowater Inc.

also purchased a low-cost newsprint mill in Korea from a financially ailing firm. The benefits

accruing from these acquisitions included lower operating costs, greater market power, and

access to rapidly-growing Asian newsprint markets.22 Producers have shut down newsprint

capacity at mills in Washington and Texas in an attempt to reduce supply, strengthen

newsprint prices, and increase profitability.23 Newsprint producers have also launched capitalspending programs to cut production costs and increase product quality. Bowater Inc. has

spent $180 million to modernize operations at its largest newsprint mill in Tennessee; SP

Newsprint Co. has indicated that it will spend approximately $75 million to improve the

quality of newsprint produced at its recently acquired mill in Oregon.24

Canadian newsprint mills have traditionally supplied a significant portion of U.S. newsprint

demand. Canadian producers have also invested in U.S. newsprint capacity through joint

ventures and direct ownership.25 Abitibi-Consolidated Inc., the largest Canadian newsprint

producer, has joint venture newsprint mills in Alabama and Georgia and owns a mill in

Washington. Kruger Inc., another Canadian producer, owns a newsprint mill in Michigan.26

Canadian investment in the United States has picked up in the past few years as Canadian

producers have attempted to increase their market share and achieve greater operating

synergies. In 1998, Abitibi-Consolidated Inc. purchased a newsprint mill in Arizona, and

Donohue Inc. purchased two newsprint mills in Texas; in 1999, Bowater Inc.’s newsprint mill

in Maine was sold to a Canadian investment group. 
 

27 Pulp & Paper 1999 North American Factbook, edited by Joyce Routson (San Francisco: 

Miller Freeman, Inc. 1998), p. 270. 

 

28 Pulp and Paper Products Council, Monthly Newsprint Statistics, Dec. 1999.

 

29 Newspaper Association of America, Facts About Newspapers 1999.

 

30 Pulp & Paper 1999 North American Factbook, edited by Joyce Routson (San Francisco: 

Miller Freeman, Inc. 1998), pp. 277, 280. 

 

31 Newspaper Association of America, Facts About Newspapers 1999.

9

U.S. MARKET

Consumer Characteristics and Factors Affecting Demand

Daily newspapers account for nearly 80 percent of newsprint demand in the United States.

The remainder of demand comes principally from commercial printers for the printing of

weekly newspapers, advertising flyers, and newspaper advertising inserts.27 In 1999, daily

newspapers in the Northeast and North Central regions of the United States accounted for 43

percent of total daily newspaper newsprint demand; daily newspapers in the Southern and

Western regions of the country accounted for 33 percent and 24 percent, respectively, of this

demand.28 In 1998, there were 1,489 daily newspapers in the United States. Eighty-four

percent had a daily circulation of less than 50,000; 9 percent, a circulation between 50,000

and 100,000; 4 percent, a circulation between 100,000 and 250,000; and 3 percent, a

circulation over 250,000. The largest newspaper company in the United States (by daily

circulation) is the Gannett Co. Inc., with 74 dailies and a daily circulation of almost 6 million.

Knight Ridder, 33 dailies and a daily circulation of 3.9 million, and Newhouse Newspapers,

23 dailies and a daily circulation of 2.8 million, are the second and third-largest newspaper

companies, respectively. Other large newspaper companies include Dow Jones & Co. Inc.,

The New York Times Co., the MediaNews Group, and E.W. Scripps Co. The top 20

newspaper companies in the United States own a total of 532 dailies. The number of weekly

newspapers in the United States in 1998 totaled 8,193, although the average circulation of

these newspapers was only 9,067.29 

The demand for newsprint in the United States is driven primarily by the activity of daily

newspapers, whose demand for newsprint, in turn, is a function of their circulation and

advertising revenues. Daily newspapers have been under pressure for many years from

alternative media such as television, radio, and magazines, which have eroded their readership

and captured advertising dollars.30 The rapid emergence of the Internet in the past few years

has presented another challenge to daily newspapers. Daily newspaper circulation in the

United States fell by 5 percent between 1994 and 1998, from 59.3 million to 56.2 million.

Newspaper circulation on Sunday also declined during 1994-98, although to a lesser extent.

Despite a large increase in the U.S. population, daily newspaper circulation in 1998 was 5

percent less than in 1960. Daily newspapers have not been as successful with young

Americans as with older Americans; only 44 percent of Americans aged 18-24 read a daily

newspaper compared with 70 percent of Americans aged 55-64. The decline in circulation has

led to a drop in the number of daily newspapers in the United States, from 1,548 in 1994 to

1,489 in 1998. An increase in the number of morning daily newspapers during this period was

more than offset by a decline in the number of evening daily newspapers.31 Daily newspaper

advertising revenues depend upon the strength of the overall economy as well as the ability
 

32 A strong U.S. economy also leads to increased spending on advertising flyers and

newspaper advertising inserts.

 

33 Newspaper Association of America, Facts About Newspapers 1999.

 

34 Ibid.

 

35 The Hearst Corporation, “Q & A with President and CEO Frank A. Bennack, Jr.,” found at

http://www.hearstcorp.com/exclusive_01.html, retrieved Mar. 23, 2000; Knight Ridder 1999

Annual Report, “Letter to Shareholders,” found at http://www.kri.com/fn_li/letter.html, retrieved

Mar. 23, 2000.

 

36 Pulp & Paper 1999 North American Factbook, edited by Joyce Routson (San Francisco: 

Miller Freeman, Inc. 1998), p. 277.

 

37 Bowater Incorporated, 1998 Annual Report.

 

38 Harold Cody, “Where Are Printing and Writing Papers Going in an Internet World?” Pulp

& Paper, Nov. 1999. 

10

of daily newspapers to compete with a host of alternative media, such as magazines, broadcast

television, cable television, direct mail, and radio, for advertising dollars. In the past few

years, the strong U.S. economy has led to increased spending on advertising in all media

outlets, including daily newspapers.32 Nevertheless, in 1998, daily newspapers accounted for

only 21.8 percent of all U.S. advertising expenditures, compared with 19.4 percent for

broadcast television and 19.7 percent for direct mail.33 

The emergence of the Internet as a new medium for information and advertising may further

erode daily newspaper readership as well as shift advertising revenues away from daily

newspapers. Daily newspapers have responded to the Internet by going online themselves.

More than 900 U.S. newspapers have web sites and more than 75 percent of these sites

contains online classified advertisements.34 However, daily newspaper companies appear

firmly committed to the printed word on paper; indeed, they believe that print and online

operations complement each other.35 Another trend affecting demand for newsprint includes

efforts by some U.S. daily newspapers to economize on their use of newsprint. The

Washington Post and The Los Angeles Times have reduced their web widths to 50 inches in

the past few years as a way to reduce the consumption and cost of their newsprint.36 Opinions

are mixed as to how all of these factors will affect future demand for newsprint in the United

States. The largest U.S. newsprint producer is optimistic about U.S. newsprint demand,

predicting “modest growth.”37 One recent consulting report, however, concluded that demand

for newsprint in the United States during the next 4 years would be negatively affected by the

growth of online news services at the expense of traditional newspapers and by the growth of

online classified advertising in place of traditional newspaper classified advertising.38 

 

Consumption

Apparent U.S. consumption of newsprint declined by 8.6 percent between 1995 and 1996,

from 12.7 mmt (valued at $8.3 billion) to 11.6 mmt (valued at $7.6 billion). A strong U.S.

economy led to a steady increase in newsprint consumption during the next 3 years; by 1999,

consumption totaled 12.6 mmt (valued at an estimated $6.5 billion), which was 8.7 percent

above the 1996 level but slightly below consumption in 1995 (tables 1 and 2). Import

penetration of the U.S. newsprint market declined gradually from 55.8 percent in 1995 to 52.9

percent in 1998, and then turned slightly upward in 1999 to 53.9 percent (table 1). Import

penetration by imports from Canada, the dominant supplier to the U.S. market, paralleled that
11

of total imports. In 1999, imports from Canada accounted for 50.6 percent of U.S. newsprint

consumption. Imports from Korea, a new entrant to the U.S. market, accounted for

2.1 percent of newsprint consumption in 1998 and 1.7 percent in 1999. 

Table 1

Newsprint: U.S. shipments, exports of domestic merchandise, imports for consumption, and

apparent U.S. consumption, 1995-99

Year U.S. shipments

U.S. 

exports

U.S. 

imports

Apparent 

U.S.

consumption

Ratio of

imports to

consumption

——————————— Thousand metric tons ———————————- Percentage

1995 ......... 6,352 752 7,083 12,683 55.8

1996 ......... 6,304 1,013 6,306 11,597 54.4

1997 ......... 6,545 967 6,503 12,081 53.8

1998 ......... 6,577 781 6,521 12,317 52.9

1999 ......... 6,517 704 6,796 12,609 53.9

Source: Compiled from data from the American Forest and Paper Association and from official statistics of the

U.S. Department of Commerce.

Table 2

Newsprint: U.S. shipments, exports of domestic merchandise, imports for consumption, and

apparent U.S. consumption, 1995-99

Year U.S. shipments

U.S. 

exports

U.S. 

imports

Apparent 

U.S.

consumption

Ratio of

imports to

consumption

————————————— Million dollars ——–—————————— Percentage

1995 ......... 4,488 591 4,418 8,315 53.1

1996 ......... 4,201 652 4,063 7,612 53.4

1997 ......... 3,712 522 3,590 6,780 52.9

1998 .........

13,912 460 3,766 7,218 52.2

1999 .........

13,356 423 3,517 6,450 54.5

1

 Estimated by the staff of the USITC.

Source: Compiled from official statistics of the U.S. Department of Commerce, except as noted.

Newsprint produced in Canada is competitive with newsprint produced in the United States.

Canada traditionally has been a significant supplier of newsprint to the United States,

supplementing U.S. newsprint capacity which falls well short of domestic demand. Canadian

producers are relatively close to large U.S. metropolitan centers and have well-established

supply relationships with many U.S. newspaper publishers. Like U.S. producers, Canadian

newsprint producers have ready access to the virgin fiber and the recycled fiber used to make

newsprint. Paper-making technology and equipment are comparable between the two

countries, and the quality of Canadian newsprint is recognized by U.S. newspaper publishers.

Kruger Inc., a large Canadian newsprint producer, was awarded the Dow Jones Gold Award
 

39 Kruger Inc., “Newsprint and Coated Paper Division,” found at

http://www.kruger.com/english/divisions/body02.html, retrieved Jan. 14, 2000.

 

40 Karl Jensen, “With Major Recovery Elusive, Mills Focus on Improving Performance,” Pulp

& Paper, Aug. 1999; Joyce Routson, Noel Deking, Diane Keaton, Debbie Garcia, Nicola

McIntosh, and Greg Rudder, “North American Industry Outlook Bright Over Next Two Years,”

Pulp & Paper, Jan. 2000.

 

41 “Newsprint Producers Set Downtime to Combat Rising Inventories, Falling Prices,” PIMA’s

Papermaker, Apr. 1999, p. 8.

12

for Best Supplier to Wall Street Journal Facilities in 1998, and in 1997 was the Supplier of

the Year to the Gannett Corp.39 

Production

The United States is the second-largest producer of newsprint in the world, trailing only

Canada. U.S. shipments of newsprint increased by 3.5 percent from 1995 to 1998, from 6.4

mmt (valued at $4.5 billion) to 6.6 mmt (valued at an estimated $3.9 billion) (tables 1 and 2).

During this period, U.S. producers were able to increase their share of the domestic market

by nearly 3 percentage points. Despite an upturn in domestic demand for newsprint during

1999, U.S. producers lost 1 percentage point of market share and experienced declines in the

volume and the value of their newsprint shipments. Prices for newsprint in the United States

declined steeply to a 5-year low during the first 9 months of 1999;40 the value of U.S.

newsprint shipments consequently fell by an estimated 14 percent in 1999. In an effort to

strengthen newsprint prices, U.S. producers took downtime to reduce newsprint output.41 For

the year, the volume of U.S. newsprint shipments decreased by 1 percent compared with the

1998 volume.

U.S. TRADE

Overview

Total U.S. trade in newsprint decreased irregularly from $5.0 billion in 1995 to $3.9 billion

in 1999, as the value of imports and the value of exports fell by 20.4 percent and by 28.4

percent, respectively, over the period (table 3). The average unit values of imports and exports

declined more than import and export volumes and thus accounted for more of the decline in

the value of trade. The United States ran a large trade deficit in newsprint during every year

of the period, although it did decrease from $3.8 billion in 1995 to $3.1 billion in 1999. As

discussed above, the United States has traditionally been a large net importer of newsprint.

During 1995-99, the United States registered a large trade deficit with Canada, the primary

source of its newsprint imports. However, the deficit declined from $4.4 billion in 1995 to

$3.3 billion in 1999 (table 3). The United States also ran trade deficits with Korea, Russia,
13

Table 3

Newsprint: U.S. exports of domestic merchandise, imports for consumption, and

merchandise trade balance, by selected countries, 1995-99

Item and country 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999

—————––——— Thousand dollars ——––——–————

U.S. exports of domestic merchandise:

Canada ....................... 8,481 4,492 7,756 18,452 10,844

Japan ......................... 310,187 294,784 236,780 198,085 204,988

Mexico ........................ 38,902 28,302 44,362 53,120 53,238

Brazil ......................... 10,823 41,656 34,628 27,471 17,172

Taiwan ........................ 33,226 26,818 23,183 13,888 11,172

Korea ......................... 24,688 15,062 1,960 10 9,775

Russia ........................ 0 85 18 0 13

Indonesia ...................... 500 1,829 4,278 0 0

Sweden ....................... 15 10 0 0 0

United Kingdom ................. 1,392 7,685 14,400 5,695 4,565

All other ....................... 162,808 231,135 154,978 143,597 111,574

Total ....................... 591,022 651,858 522,343 460,318 423,341

U.S. imports for consumption:

Canada ....................... 4,371,269 4,019,150 3,488,032 3,517,326 3,341,296

Japan ......................... 0 4 0 39 10

Mexico ........................ 3,480 8,889 12,288 24,371 10,789

Brazil ......................... 0 0 0 1,022 2,015

Taiwan ........................ 0 0 0 3 4

Korea ......................... 0 1,489 29,633 116,880 84,824

Russia ........................ 1,004 1,371 6,522 39,128 32,621

Indonesia ...................... 0 0 298 10,684 12,917

Sweden ....................... 18,984 13,983 19,081 20,979 10,614

United Kingdom ................. 3,696 4,504 4,563 4,917 6,961

All other ....................... 19,638 13,959 29,953 30,401 15,321

Total ....................... 4,418,071 4,063,349 3,590,370 3,765,750 3,517,372

U.S. merchandise trade balance:

 Canada ........................ -4,362,788 -4,014,658 -3,480,276 -3,498,874 -3,330,452

Japan ......................... 310,187 294,780 236,780 198,046 204,978

Mexico ........................ 35,422 19,413 32,074 28,749 42,449

Brazil ......................... 10,823 41,656 34,628 26,449 15,157

Taiwan ........................ 33,226 26,818 23,183 13,885 11,168

Korea ......................... 24,688 13,573 -27,673 -116,870 -75,049

Russia ........................ -1,004 -1,286 -6,504 -39,128 -32,608

Indonesia ...................... 500 1,829 3,980 -10,684 -12,917

Sweden ....................... -18,969 -13,973 -19,081 -20,979 -10,614

United Kingdom ................. -2,304 3,181 9,837 778 -2,396

All other ....................... 143,170 217,176 125,025 113,196 96,253

Total ....................... -3,827,049 -3,411,491 -3,068,027 -3,305,432 -3,094,031

Note.—Because of rounding, figures may not add to the totals shown. Import values are based on customs

value; export values are based on f.a.s. value, U.S. port of export.

Source: Compiled from official statistics of the U.S. Department of Commerce.
 

42 Fletcher Challenge Paper, “1999 Annual Review Chief Executive’s Overview,” found at 

http://www.fcl.co.nz/99_annual_report/annual_review/paper/ce_review.htm, retrieved Jan. 18,

2000.

14

Indonesia, and Sweden, albeit at much lower levels than that with Canada. A rapid increase

in imports from Russia caused the deficit with Russia to jump from only $1.0 million in 1995

to $32.6 million in 1999. A modest trade surplus in newsprint with Indonesia during 1995-97

swung to a trade deficit of $12.9 million in 1999 as U.S. newsprint imports from Indonesia

grew rapidly in 1998 and 1999. The U.S. trade balance in newsprint with Korea swung from

a surplus of $24.7 million in 1995 to a deficit of $75.0 million in 1999. U.S. newsprint

exports to Korea plummeted because the country’s recession reduced demand for newsprint;

at the same time, significant new newsprint capacity came on line in Korea, which further

reduced demand for U.S. imports and also led to a significant increase in exports to the United

States as the Korean mills found a market for their additional tonnage.42 

The United States enjoyed trade surpluses in newsprint with Japan, Mexico, Brazil, and

Taiwan during 1995-99 (table 3). The trade surplus with Japan declined irregularly from

$310.2 million in 1995 to $205.0 million in 1999. The trade surpluses with Mexico, Brazil,

and Taiwan fluctuated during the period and in 1999 totaled $42.4 million, $15.2 million, and

$11.2 million, respectively. 

U.S. imports

Principal suppliers and import levels

The United States is the largest importer of newsprint in the world and in 1998 accounted for

34 percent of world newsprint imports. U.S. imports of newsprint declined by 10.0 percent

between 1995 and 1996, from 7.1 mmt to 6.3 mmt (table 4). Imports gradually increased over

the next 3 years to 6.8 mmt in 1999, a decrease of 4.1 percent from the 1995 level. The

decline in the volume of imports occurred because U.S.-produced newsprint increased its

share of the U.S. newsprint market by two percentage points. The value of U.S. newsprint

imports fell by 20.4 percent, from $4.4 billion in 1995 to $3.5 billion in 1999. The U.S. rate

of duty on newsprint is free.

Canada was the principal supplier of newsprint to the United States during 1995-99,

accounting for over 90 percent of total U.S. imports (table 4). This percentage share has fallen

slightly in the past 3 years, however, as other countries have begun to make some small

inroads into the U.S. market. Newsprint imports from Canada decreased irregularly between

1995 and 1999, from 7.0 mmt to 6.4 mmt. On a value basis, imports fell from $4.4 billion in

1995 to $3.3 billion in 1999, a decline of 23.6 percent. 

Korea became the second-largest supplier of newsprint to the United States during the period.

Newsprint imports from Korea jumped from zero in 1995 to 256,000 metric tons (valued at

$116.9 million) in 1998 and to 210,000 metric tons (valued at $84.8 million) in 1999 (table

4). Korea’s share of the volume of total U.S. newsprint imports rose from zero in 1995 to
15

Table 4

Newsprint: U.S. imports for consumption, by principal sources, 1995-99

Source 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999

Percentage

change

95/99

 ——––—— Quantity (thousand metric tons) ——––——

Canada .................... 7,005 6,232 6,296 6,005 6,382 -8.9

Korea ..................... 0 3 64 256 210 (

1

)

Russia ..................... 2 2 15 92 81 3950.0

Indonesia ................... 0 0 1 25 33 (

1

)

Mexico ..................... 6 14 21 45 22 266.7

Sweden .................... 32 23 26 29 15 -53.1

United Kingdom .............. 6 7 9 11 17 183.3

Norway .................... 6 13 48 18 9 50.0

Finland .................... 16 6 7 19 6 -62.5

Netherlands ................. 5 0 (

2

) 2 7 40.0

All other .................... 5 6 16 19 14 180.0

 Total .................... 7,083 6,306 6,503 6,521 6,796 -4.1

—————— Value (thousand dollars) ———————

Canada .................... 4,371,269 4,019,150 3,488,032 3,517,326 3,341,296 -23.6

Korea ..................... 0 1,489 29,633 116,880 84,824 (

1

)

Russia ..................... 1,004 1,371 6,522 39,128 32,621 3149.1

Indonesia ................... 0 0 298 10,684 12,917 (

1

)

Mexico ..................... 3,480 8,889 12,288 24,371 10,789 210.0

Sweden .................... 18,984 13,983 19,081 20,979 10,614 -44.1

United Kingdom .............. 3,696 4,504 4,563 4,917 6,961 88.3

Norway .................... 2,722 7,164 18,819 9,696 4,878 79.2

Finland .................... 11,086 4,724 3,762 10,706 2,796 -74.8

Netherlands ................. 2,839 0 25 981 2,671 -5.9

All other .................... 2,991 2,075 7,347 10,082 7,005 134.2

 Total .................... 4,418,071 4,063,349 3,590,370 3,765,750 3,517,372 -20.4

————— Unit value (dollars per metric ton) ——–——

Canada .................... 624 645 554 586 524 -16.0

Korea ..................... (

1

) 491 464 457 405 (

1

)

Russia ..................... 465 591 444 424 404 -13.1

Indonesia ................... (

1

) (

1

) 437 431 386 (

1

)

Mexico ..................... 631 641 596 540 502 -20.4

Sweden .................... 593 599 737 712 728 22.8

United Kingdom .............. 644 630 484 465 405 -37.1

Norway .................... 457 553 390 536 543 18.8

Finland .................... 702 740 566 578 507 -27.8

Netherlands ................. 594 (

1

) (

1

) 464 387 -34.8

All other .................... 598 346 459 531 500 -16.4

 Total .................... 624 644 552 577 518 -17.0

 

1

 Not applicable.

 

2

 Less than 500 metric tons.

Note.–Because of rounding, figures may not add to the totals shown; unit values have been calculated from actual

quantity and value numbers, not the rounded numbers shown herein. 

Source: Compiled from official statistics of the U.S. Department of Commerce. 
 

43 U.S. statistical note to ch. 48.

16

3.1 percent in 1999. Newsprint imports from Russia, where producers looked to export

markets to obtain foreign exchange, also increased strongly from only 2,000 metric tons

(valued at $1.0 million) in 1995 to 81,000 metric tons (valued at $32.6 million) in 1999.

Newsprint imports from Indonesia and Mexico have grown in the past few years but remain

quite small relative to the aforementioned three suppliers.

U.S. trade measures 

Table 5 shows the column 1 rate of duty, as of January 1, 2000, for the articles included in

this summary, and corresponding U.S. exports and imports for 1999. An explanation of tariff

and trade agreement terms is in appendix A. For many years, imports of newsprint have

entered the United States free of duty. U.S. imports of newsprint are not subject to quotas,

embargoes, or other nontariff barriers. No U.S. Government trade-related investigations

specific to the newsprint industry have been conducted in recent years. 

Table 5

Newsprint: Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading; description; U.S. column 1 rate of duty as of

Jan. 1, 2000; U.S. exports, 1999; and U.S. imports, 1999

Col. 1 rate of duty

as of Jan. 1, 2000

U.S. exports 

1999

U.S. imports

 1999

HTS

subheading Description General

–––––– Million dollars –––––

4801.00.00 Newsprint, in rolls or sheets ......... Free 423 3,517

Source: Trade data compiled from official statistics of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

The Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States classifies newsprint as either standard

newsprint paper (4801.00.0020) or other newsprint (4801.00.0040). According to the

Harmonized Tariff Schedule,43 standard newsprint paper is paper that conforms to the

following specifications:

Weight ................ Not less than 46.3 g/m2 nor more than

57 g/m2

Size .................. Rolls not less than 33 cm wide and not

less than 71 cm in diameter; sheets

not less than 51 cm by 76 cm

Thickness ............. Not more than 0.11 mm

Sizing ................ Time of transudation of water shall be

not more than 10 seconds by the

ground glass method

Ash content ............ Not more than 6.5 percent

Color and finish ......... White; or tinted shades of pink, peach

or green in rolls; not more than

50 percent gloss when tested with the

Ingersoll glarimeter
 

44 Bowater Incorporated, 1998 Annual Report.

 

45 Weyerhaeuser Co., “Fact Sheet on the Newsprint Business,” found at 

http://www.weyerhaeuser.com/facts/newspr.htm, retrieved Jan. 13, 2000.

17

The vast majority of the volume of U.S. imports of newsprint consists of standard newsprint.

Imports of standard newsprint as a percent of total U.S. imports of newsprint ranged from

86 percent in 1999 to 95 percent in 1995. 

U.S. exports

Principal markets and export levels

U.S. exports of newsprint increased by 35 percent between 1995 and 1996, from 752,000

metric tons to 1.0 mmt (table 6). Exports declined steadily during the next 3 years and in 1999

totaled only 704,000 metric tons, a decrease of 31 percent from 1996. The value of U.S.

newsprint exports exhibited a similar trend, peaking in 1996 at $651.9 million and then

gradually falling by 35 percent to $423.3 million in 1999. A decline in both the average unit

value of exports and the volume of exports during the period contributed to the decrease in the

value of U. S. newsprint exports. The economic downturn in Asia that began in mid-1997

caused a drop in newsprint demand in the region and a subsequent decline in U.S. newsprint

exports to the area.44 Newsprint exports as a percentage of U.S. newsprint shipments ranged

from 10.8 percent to 16.1 percent during 1995-99.

The principal markets for U.S. exports of newsprint are in Asia and Latin America (table 6).

Japan was the largest export market during the period, accounting for 40 percent of the total

volume of exports in 1999. Newsprint exports to Japan fell from 357,000 metric tons (valued

at $310.2 million) in 1995 to 281,000 metric tons (valued at $205.0 million) in 1999. Most

of these exports originated from a newsprint joint venture between Weyerhaeuser Co. and

Nippon Paper Industries Co. Ltd. The joint venture, the North Pacific Paper Corp., has an

annual newsprint capacity of 700,000 metric tons, with one-half of the output sold in Japan

and the other one-half sold in the western United States.45

Mexico was the second-largest export market for U.S. newsprint. Exports increased from

66,000 metric tons (valued at $38.9 million) in 1995 to 105,000 metric tons (valued at $53.2

million) in 1999 (table 6). In 1999, exports to Mexico accounted for 15 percent of the total

volume of U.S. exports of newsprint. Brazil was the third-largest market for U.S. exports of

newsprint in 1999, although exports to that country declined from 78,000 metric tons in 1997

to 34,000 metric tons in 1999. The United States exported moderate amounts of newsprint to

a host of other countries during the period, including El Salvador, Taiwan, Canada, Korea,

Malaysia, and Argentina. In 1999, the value of exports to these six countries ranged from $9

million to $13 million.
18

Table 6

Newsprint: U.S. exports of domestic merchandise, by principal markets, 1995-99

Market 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999

Percentage

change

95/99

————— Quantity (thousand metric tons) ———–—

Japan ..................... 357 392 357 303 281 -21.3

Mexico ..................... 66 48 92 101 105 59.1

Brazil ...................... 13 67 78 57 34 161.5

El Salvador ................. 10 10 14 12 21 110.0

Taiwan .................... 54 48 49 29 26 -51.9

Canada .................... 14 7 13 28 19 35.7

Korea ..................... 35 19 4 (

1

) 14 -60.0

Malaysia ................... 37 22 34 19 21 -43.2

Argentina ................... 5 8 12 12 20 300.0

Panama .................... 6 7 10 14 14 133.3

All other .................... 155 385 304 206 149 -3.9

Total .................... 752 1,013 967 781 704 -6.4

 ——————— Value (thousand dollars) ——————

Japan ..................... 310,187 294,784 236,780 198,085 204,988 -33.9

Mexico ..................... 38,902 28,302 44,362 53,120 53,238 36.9

Brazil ...................... 10,823 41,656 34,628 27,471 17,172 58.7

El Salvador ................. 6,988 7,333 9,865 8,165 12,778 82.9

Taiwan .................... 33,226 26,818 23,183 13,888 11,172 -66.4

Canada .................... 8,481 4,492 7,756 18,452 10,844 27.9

Korea ..................... 24,688 15,062 1,960 10 9,775 -60.4

Malaysia ................... 29,196 13,410 13,595 9,369 9,349 -68.0

Argentina ................... 3,926 4,550 5,272 5,781 9,033 130.1

Panama .................... 3,342 4,155 5,939 9,098 8,568 156.4

All other .................... 121,263 211,296 139,003 116,879 76,424 -37.0

Total .................... 591,022 651,858 522,343 460,318 423,341 -28.4

——–—— Unit value (dollars per metric ton) ————

Japan ..................... 870 752 663 653 730 -16.1

Mexico ..................... 585 589 484 525 507 -13.3

Brazil ...................... 840 623 442 480 498 -40.7

El Salvador ................. 704 749 680 660 615 -12.6

Taiwan .................... 620 560 469 483 424 -31.6

Canada .................... 600 646 618 650 568 -5.3

Korea ..................... 708 808 527 (

2

) 713 0.7

Malaysia ................... 786 609 395 503 445 -43.4

Argentina ................... 732 565 431 472 448 -38.8

Panama .................... 541 609 605 667 615 13.7

All other .................... 782 549 457 567 513 -34.4

Total ................... 786 643 540 589 601 -23.5

 

1

 Less than 500 metric tons.

 

2

 Not applicable.

Note.—Because of rounding, figures may not add to the totals shown; unit values have been calculated from

actual quantity and value numbers, not the rounded numbers shown herein. 

Source: Compiled from official statistics of the U.S. Department of Commerce. 
 

46 Canadian Pulp and Paper Association, Newsprint Data 1999, Aug. 1999.

19

Foreign trade measures 

Tariffs on newsprint in major U.S. export markets are the same or higher than the U.S. level:

Country

Ad valorem tariff on

newsprint (percent)

Canada ................... 0

Mexico .................... (

1

)

Korea .................... 8

Indonesia .................. 5

Taiwan ................... 5

Malaysia .................. 5

Brazil ..................... 19

Japan .................... 0

European Union ............. (

2

)

 

1

 Imports of newsprint from the United States and Canada

enter Mexico free of duty, while those from other countries face a

15 percent ad valorem tariff.

 

2

 The European Union has a tariff-rate quota on newsprint–the

first 650,000 metric tons of newsprint enter free of duty, anything

above this amount has a tariff of 2.5 percent ad valorem.

Nontariff barriers are not believed to be a significant impediment to U.S. exports of newsprint

or to worldwide trade in newsprint. 

FOREIGN INDUSTRY PROFILE

Overview of World Market

Production of newsprint occurs in approximately 40 countries throughout the world but is

concentrated in those countries with abundant forest resources and developed infrastructures.

World newsprint production increased by 8.2 percent between 1994 and 1998, from 33.6 mmt

to 36.4 mmt (table 7). Canada was the largest producer, accounting for 24 percent of world

newsprint output in 1998 (figure 2). The United States was the second-largest producer,

accounting for 18 percent of world output, followed by Japan, 9 percent, Sweden, 7 percent,

Korea, 5 percent, and Germany, Russia, and Finland, each with 4 percent. The European

Union (EU) accounted for 24 percent of world newsprint output in 1998. In recent years,

production of newsprint in Asia has increased at a faster pace than that in the other major

producing regions of the world. Between 1994 and 1998, Asian newsprint output rose by

34 percent, compared with an increase of only 4 percent in the United States, 9 percent in the

EU, and a decline in Canada of 8 percent. Asian newsprint production as a percent of world

newsprint production thus grew from 16 percent in 1994 to 20 percent in 1998.46
20

Figure 2

Newsprint: Share of world production by selected countries and the European Union,

1998

Table 7

Newsprint: Production by major producing countries, 1994-98

Country 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

–––––––––––––– Quantity (thousand metric tons) ––––––––––––––

Canada ........................ 9,299 9,226 9,027 9,208 8,581

United States .................... 6,335 6,352 6,304 6,545 6,577

Japan ......................... 2,972 3,098 3,132 3,192 3,265

Sweden1....................... 2,415 2,346 2,283 2,411 2,478

Korea ......................... 874 948 1,305 1,592 1,689

Germany ....................... 1,499 1,726 1,557 1,673 1,596

Russia ......................... 1,038 1,457 1,243 1,198 1,543

Finland ........................ 1,446 1,240 1,326 1,467 1,507

All other ........................ 7,732 8,257 8,315 8,851 9,131

Total ........................ 33,610 34,650 34,492 36,137 36,367

 

1

 Production of newsprint in the European Union totaled 8.0 mmt in 1994, 8.2 mmt in 1995, 8.0 mmt in 1996,

8.7 mmt in 1997, and 8.7 mmt in 1998.

Source: Canadian Pulp and Paper Association.

Source: Canadian Pulp and Paper Association.
 

47 Ibid.

 

48 Ibid.

 

49 Ibid.

 

50 Harold Cody, “Where Are Printing and Writing Papers Going in an Internet World?” Pulp

& Paper, Nov. 1999. 

 

51 Canadian Pulp and Paper Association, Newsprint Data 1999, Aug. 1999.

 

52 Bowater Incorporated, 1998 Annual Report.

 

53 Canadian Pulp and Paper Association, Newsprint Data 1999, Aug. 1999.

 

54 “Most New Newsprint PMs in Asia, Europe,” Pulp & Paper, Jan. 1999, p. 27.

21

Newsprint is a commodity in demand throughout the world, although most consumption

occurs in the developed countries. World consumption of newsprint rose by 5 percent between

1994 and 1998, from 34.2 mmt to 35.8 mmt.47 In 1998, the United States accounted for

32 percent of world consumption, the EU, 25 percent of world consumption, Japan,

11 percent, Asia (excluding Japan), 14 percent, and Latin America, 6 percent (figure 3).

Growth in demand for newsprint in Asia has outstripped that of other world regions in recent

years and consequently Asia now accounts for a larger share of world demand.48 

Newsprint is a heavily traded commodity. World exports of newsprint rose from 16.2 mmt in

1994 to 17.1 mmt in 1998. In 1998, these exports accounted for nearly one-half of world

newsprint production.49 Canada was the largest exporter and accounted for 43 percent of

world newsprint exports in 1998. Other significant country exporters and their respective

shares of world newsprint exports in 1998 were Sweden (12 percent), Russia (7 percent),

Finland (6 percent), Korea (5 percent), Norway (4 percent), and the United States (4 percent)

(figure 4).

Although newspapers in the developed countries have survived the growth of alternative media

such as radio and television, the rapid emergence of the Internet as an information and

advertising medium threatens the growth in demand for newsprint in the developed countries.50

Demand for newsprint in Asia, which had been growing at a faster rate than demand in the

developed countries, tumbled by 10 percent between 1997 and 1998 as the Asian financial

crisis reduced economic activity in the area. Latin America, another growth area for

newsprint, also experienced a decline in newsprint demand in 1998 as the effects of the Asian

crisis spread to this region.51 Nevertheless, the long-term outlook for newsprint demand in

these two areas, particularly in Asia, is good. As the Asian economies rebound, growing and

increasingly educated and affluent populations will want more reading materials, including

newspapers.52 

The United States and Canada accounted for more than 40 percent of worldwide newsprint

capacity during 1994-98, but combined capacity in these two countries grew by less than 2

percent over the period. The lion’s share of the growth in worldwide newsprint capacity during

the period occurred in Asia, where capacity rose by 33 percent, from 6.2 mmt to 8.3 mmt.

Capacity also increased in the EU but to a lesser extent than in Asia.53 Out of 13 new

newsprint paper machines that have been installed or are planned to be installed during 1998-

02, Asia accounts for 7, Europe for 4, and North America and Africa, for 1 each.54 The

newsprint industry has experienced consolidation, particularly in North America, as newsprint

producers have bought competitors in an attempt to increase their market power, achieve
22

Figure 3

Newsprint: Share of world demand by selected countries and regions, 1998

Source: Canadian Pulp and Paper Association.
23

Figure 4

Newsprint: Share of world exports by major exporting countries, 1998

Source: Canadian Pulp and Paper Association.
 

55 Charles Swann, “Bowater: Going for Its Goals,” PIMA’s Papermaker, June 1999.

 

56 Ibid.

 

57 In Canada, a large percentage of the softwood fiber is in the form of chips, shavings, and

sawdust from sawmills, with the remainder in the form of softwood logs. Canadian Pulp and

Paper Association, Reference Tables 1999, Sept. 1999.

 

58 Canadian Pulp and Paper Association, Newsprint Data 1999, Aug. 1999.

 

59 Canadian Pulp and Paper Association, Reference Tables 1999, Sept. 1999.

 

60 1999 Lockwood-Post’s Directory of the Pulp, Paper and Allied Trades, edited by Harry

Dyer (San Francisco: Miller Freeman, Inc. 1998).

 

61 Bowater Incorporated, “Bowater to Combine with Avenor,” press release, Mar. 9, 1998.

 

62 Canadian Pulp and Paper Association, Reference Tables 1999, Sept. 1999.

24

greater economies of scale, reduce costs, and retire high cost capacity.55 Finally, the Asian

financial crisis has provided an opportunity for Western newsprint producers to gain a

foothold in fast-growing Asian newsprint markets by buying Asian newsprint capacity.56 

 

Market Profiles

Canada

An abundant natural resource (softwood trees),57 competitive power costs, a trained labor

force, proximity to the largest newsprint market in the world (the United States), and longstanding supply relationships with U.S. newspaper publishers have made Canada a dominant

newsprint supplier. Indeed, the country has been the world’s largest producer and exporter of

newsprint for decades. Canadian newsprint capacity totaled 9.8 mmt in 1998, equal to 25

percent of worldwide newsprint capacity.58 The Provinces of Quebec and Ontario accounted

for 43 percent and 21 percent, respectively, of Canadian newsprint capacity; British Columbia

and the Atlantic Provinces of New Brunswick, Newfoundland, and Nova Scotia accounted for

most of the remainder.59 Canadian newsprint producers range from Abitibi-Consolidated Inc.,

the largest newsprint producer in the world, to smaller producers with less than 500,000

metric tons of annual newsprint capacity. Some Canadian newsprint mills are partially or

wholly foreign-owned. Howe Sound Pulp and Paper Ltd., a newsprint mill in British

Columbia, is a joint venture of Canfor Corp., a Canadian producer, and Oji Paper Co. Ltd.,

a Japanese paper producer. Stora Enso Port Hawkesbury Ltd., a newsprint mill in Nova

Scotia, is a subsidiary of Stora Enso, a large European paper producer.60 In early 1998,

Bowater Inc., a U.S. newsprint producer, purchased Avenor Inc., a Canadian newsprint

producer.61 Canadian newsprint producers have invested in the United States. AbitibiConsolidated Inc. has newsprint mills in Arizona, Washington, Texas, Alabama, and Georgia;

Alliance Forest Products Inc. owns a newsprint mill in Alabama. 

Newsprint is the leading type of paper produced in Canada, although its share of total paper

and paperboard output has declined in recent years as production of other types of paper and

paperboard has grown at a more rapid pace. In 1998, newsprint accounted for 46 percent of

the total volume of paper and paperboard produced in Canada.62 Production of newsprint in

Canada was relatively flat during 1994-97, totaling about 9.2 mmt per year (table 7).

Production declined by 7 percent in 1998 as two major Canadian producers experienced long
 

63 PricewaterhouseCoopers, Global Forest and Paper Industry Survey, 1999 ed., p. 25.

 

64 Pulp & Paper 1999 North American Factbook, edited by Joyce Routson (San Francisco: 

Miller Freeman, Inc. 1998), pp. 269-288.

 

65 Karl Jensen, “With Major Recovery Elusive, Mills Focus on Improving Performance,” Pulp

& Paper, Aug. 1999.

 

66 Pulp & Paper 1999 North American Factbook, edited by Joyce Routson (San Francisco: 

Miller Freeman, Inc. 1998), p. 279.

 

67 Abitibi-Consolidated Inc., “Abitibi-Consolidated to Combine with Donohue in a $7.1

Billion Transaction Following Quebecor’s Decision to Divest Its Ownership Position,” press

release, Feb. 11, 2000.

25

labor strikes and the financial crisis in Asia reduced that region’s demand for Canadian

exports.63 

The Canadian newsprint market is relatively small and consequently Canada’s newsprint

industry has traditionally relied heavily upon export markets, particularly the United States.

In 1998, 86 percent of Canadian newsprint production was exported. Canadian newsprint

exports declined irregularly between 1994 and 1998 from 8.3 mmt to 7.4 mmt (table 8).

Although the United States is the largest market for Canada’s newsprint exports, Canada has

other important markets throughout the world. In 1998, the United States accounted for 72

percent of Canada’s exports, Western Europe, 8 percent, Asia, 9 percent, and Latin America

and the Caribbean, 10 percent.

Despite its dominant size, the Canadian newsprint industry has faced challenges in recent

years. The market for newsprint in the United States, Canada’s largest market, is mature and

slow growing; the Canadian industry has many old, small newsprint machines; its cost of

wood has been increasing; it has had to respond to the demand for recycled content newsprint

from U.S. newspaper publishers; and its financial results have been mediocre.64 The Canadian

newsprint industry has taken a number of steps to maintain its competitiveness. It has

developed new markets for its newsprint exports to reduce its dependence on the U.S. market

as well as to take advantage of faster newsprint growth rates, especially in Asia and Latin

America. The industry has held the line on any new newsprint capacity; between 1994 and

1998, newsprint capacity grew by less than 2 percent. Old newsprint machines have been shut

down or converted to the production of other grades of paper. Abitibi-Consolidated Inc., the

largest Canadian newsprint producer, recently shut down two newsprint machines and is

converting newsprint capacity at another mill to the production of other paper grades.65 Many

of the Canadian mills have installed equipment to process old newspapers and old magazines

into newsprint and thus increase the recycled content of their newsprint output. The industry

has also invested in new equipment and production processes to increase productivity and

product quality. Finally, in an attempt to increase profitability, the Canadian newsprint

industry has undergone a process of consolidation to reduce the number of suppliers and to

cut costs by closing old, inefficient capacity, reducing employment, and achieving better

operating synergies.66 Abitibi-Consolidated Inc., itself a merger of Abitibi-Price and StoneConsolidated in 1997, announced in February 2000 that it would combine with Donohue Inc.,

the second-largest Canadian newsprint producer. The two companies stated that the

combination would provide C$250 million in synergy savings, lead to the reduction of

515,000 metric tons of high-cost newsprint capacity, and create a “global low-cost

producer.”67 
 

68 PricewaterhouseCoopers, Global Forest and Paper Industry Survey, 1999 ed., p. 26.

 

69 Canadian Pulp and Paper Association, Newsprint Data 1999, Aug. 1999.

 

70 1999 Lockwood-Post’s Directory of the Pulp, Paper and Allied Trades, edited by Harry

Dyer (San Francisco: Miller Freeman, Inc. 1998).

 

71 Pulp & Paper International, Annual Review, 1995-99. 

 

72 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), “Asia-Pacific Forestry

Towards 2010,” Asia-Pacific Forestry Sector Outlook Study, 1998.

26

Table 8

Newsprint: Canadian exports, by principal markets, 1994-98

Market 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

—————— Quantity (thousand metric tons) ——–————

United States ........................ 5,906 5,812 5,269 5,563 5,266

Western Europe ...................... 742 557 695 682 621

Latin America/Caribbean ............... 672 712 531 826 700

Asia ............................... 907 879 1,180 1,095 692

All other ............................ 98 92 72 83 83

Total ............................. 8,325 8,052 7,747 8,249 7,362

Source: Canadian Pulp and Paper Association.

Japan

Japan is the third-largest producer of newsprint in the world, but virtually all production

serves domestic demand. Exports totaled only 84,000 metric tons in 1998 and accounted for

less than 3 percent of production. Production of newsprint in Japan rose gradually from 3.0

mmt in 1994 to 3.3 mmt in 1998 (table 7). Production declined during 1999 because a weak

economy reduced advertising expenditures, leading to a drop in newspaper advertising pages

and demand for newsprint.68 Japan is one of the largest consumers of newsprint in the world,

accounting for 11 percent of world demand in 1998 (figure 3). Consumption of newsprint in

Japan increased from 3.5 mmt in 1994 to 3.8 mmt in 1997 and then fell slightly in 1998.

Newsprint imports maintained a presence in the Japanese market during the period, ranging

from 565,000 metric tons in 1995 to 643,000 metric tons in 1997; import penetration in 1998

was about 16 percent.69 Most of these imports, however, were from Japanese joint-venture

mills in the United States and Canada.70 

Japan is the second-largest producer of paper and paperboard in the world, producing

significant volumes of printing and writing paper, corrugating materials, board, and other

paper grades, as well as newsprint. Newsprint accounted for only 11 percent of total paper

and paperboard output in Japan in 199871 and is but one of numerous grades of paper

produced by the major newsprint producers in Japan. Japan is a heavily forested country but

much of the forest area is in mountainous terrain. In recent years, a declining and aging work

force in rural areas, rising labor costs, and increasing costs of logging in steep terrain have

made logging in many of Japan’s forests increasingly unviable.72 Consequently, Japanese

paper producers have turned increasingly to the use of lower cost imported wood chips and
 

73 Japan Paper Association, “Breakdown of domestically produced woodchips,” found at

http://www.paper-jpa.or.jp/ekanren/egenryou01.htm, retrieved Jan. 19, 1999.

 

74 Japan Paper Association, “Chairman’s New Year Greetings,” found at 

http://www.paper-jpa.or.jp/saishin/pre99_e.htm, retrieved Jan. 19, 1999.

 

75 Oji Paper Co., Ltd., Annual Report 1998.

 

76 Harold Cody, “Where Are Printing and Writing Papers Going in an Internet World?” Pulp

& Paper, Nov. 1999. 

 

77 Canadian Pulp and Paper Association, Newsprint Data 1999, Aug. 1999.

 

78 “Stora Enso Merger Gets the EC’s Official Stamp,” Pulp & Paper International, Jan. 1999,

p. 11.

 

79 PricewaterhouseCoopers, Global Forest and Paper Industry Survey, 1999 ed., p. 25.

 

80 “Palm Gets New News Line on Line,” PIMA’s Papermaker, Dec. 1999, p. 20. 

27

have correspondingly reduced their use of domestic wood chips.73 These producers also rely

on imported pulp and recycled wastepaper to make newsprint. 

The sluggish Japanese economy during the past few years has slowed the growth in demand

for paper in Japan and put pressure upon Japanese paper producers to cut costs, increase

productivity, and reduce excess capacity.74 Producers have responded by consolidating. Oji

Paper Co., Ltd., the largest newsprint producer in Japan, merged with Kanzaki Paper Mfg.

Co., Ltd. in 1993 and then merged with Honshu Paper Co., Ltd. in 1996.75 Nippon Paper

Industries Co., Ltd., the second-largest newsprint producer in Japan, was formed from the

merger of two producers in 1993. Another challenge facing the Japanese newsprint industry

is the growing popularity of the Internet in Japan as a source of news and advertising in place

of the daily newspaper.76

European Union

The EU is a major producer and consumer of newsprint, accounting for 24 percent of world

newsprint production and 25 percent of world demand in 1998 (figures 2 and 3). Fueled by

rising demand, production of newsprint in the EU increased by 9 percent between 1994 and

1998, from 8.0 mmt to 8.7 mmt. Sweden, Finland, and Germany are the largest EU producers

of newsprint; combined output from these three countries totaled 5.6 mmt in 1998, 64 percent

of total EU production. These three countries are also the largest exporters of newsprint, with

most of their exports destined for other countries in the EU. The top three EU markets for

newsprint, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom, accounted for 61 percent of total EU

demand in 1998.77 

Most newsprint output in the EU comes from producers which make a range of paper

products. Like their counterparts in North America and Japan, these producers have been

under pressure to consolidate in order to cut costs, reduce capacity, and improve operating

performance. Stora, a Swedish paper producer, and Enso, a Finnish paper company, merged

in 1998 to become the largest paper producer in the world. Both companies have significant

newsprint operations.78 Despite the pressure to consolidate and rationalize capacity, some

firms have recently brought on new newsprint capacity to serve growing demand in the EU.

In 1998, a new newsprint machine started up in Spain, and in early 1999 a huge newsprint

machine began operations in France.79 In late 1999, new capacity started up in Germany.80

Overall, newsprint capacity in the EU rose by 4 percent between 1994 and 1998, from
 

81 Canadian Pulp and Paper Association, Newsprint Data 1999, Aug. 1999.

 

82 Harold Cody, “Where Are Printing and Writing Papers Going in an Internet World?” Pulp

& Paper, Nov. 1999. 

 

83 Canadian Pulp and Paper Association, Newsprint Data 1999, Aug. 1999.

 

84 Ibid.

 

85 Ibid.

 

86 Pulp & Paper International, Annual Review, 1999.

 

87 Miller Freeman, 1999 International Pulp & Paper Directory. Germany has a very well

developed system for the recovery and recycling of paper products. Mark Payne, European

Analysis and Forecast (Brussels: Miller Freeman Inc. 1998), p. 36. 

 

88 George Ionides, “North American Newsprint: A Maturing Market,” Pulp & Paper, Apr.

1999.

28

8.5 mmt to 8.9 mmt.81 Newsprint producer optimism about the future growth in demand for

newsprint in the EU is tempered, however, by the rapid spread of the Internet and the impact

it may have on advertising expenditures and consumer reading habits.82 

Sweden is the fourth-largest producer of newsprint in the world, accounting for 7 percent of

world newsprint production in 1998 (table 7). With a relatively small domestic market for

newsprint, Sweden depends heavily upon export markets, particularly in Europe. In 1998,

Sweden’s exports of newsprint accounted for 83 percent of Swedish newsprint production.

With exports flat during 1994-98, newsprint production in Sweden during the period remained

flat.83 Finland is another significant producer of newsprint, accounting for 4 percent of world

output in 1998 (table 7). Like Sweden, Finland has a small domestic market and is thus very

dependent upon export markets in Europe. In 1998, Finnish newsprint exports accounted for

64 percent of Finnish newsprint production.84 During 1994-98, production of newsprint in

Finland increased by 4 percent (table 7). Although Germany is a major producer of newsprint

(accounting for 4 percent of world newsprint production in 1998), its output falls well short

of domestic demand, causing the country to turn to imports to fill the gap. Production of

newsprint in Germany rose from 1.5 mmt in 1994 to 1.6 mmt in 1998; demand for newsprint

was flat at approximately 2.3 mmt per year. During the period, Germany was the third-largest

importer of newsprint, behind the United States and the United Kingdom.85 

Sweden, Finland, and Germany produce significant volumes of a variety of paper and

paperboard products. In 1998, newsprint output as a percent of total paper and paperboard

output was 25 percent in Sweden, 12 percent in Finland, and 10 percent in Germany.86

Sweden and Finland have vast forest resources which are utilized for the production of

newsprint; the two countries rely to a lesser extent on recycled wastepaper as a fiber source

for newsprint. Germany has some forests but relies to a larger extent on recycled wastepaper

to produce newsprint.87 All three countries have long traditions of making paper, skilled work

forces, and they employ the latest in paper-making technology. Newsprint paper machines in

these countries, on average, are newer, faster, and more productive than newsprint paper

machines in the United States and Canada.88 
 

89 Canadian Pulp and Paper Association, Newsprint Data 1999, Aug. 1999.

 

90 Ibid.

 

91 Ibid.

 

92 Pulp & Paper International, Annual Review, 1999.

 

93 Charles Swann, “Bowater: Going for Its Goals,” PIMA’s Papermaker, June 1999.

29

Korea

Korea’s rapid economic growth and development in recent years has been accompanied by a

significant expansion of its paper and paperboard industry. Newsprint has participated in this

expansion, with Korea becoming an important newsprint producer and exporter in the past 5

years. Newsprint capacity in Korea almost doubled between 1994 and 1998, from 890,000

metric tons to 1.7 mmt.89 Production of newsprint exhibited a similar trend, jumping from

874,000 metric tons in 1994 to 1.7 mmt in 1998 (table 7). Korea was the fifth-largest

producer of newsprint in the world and accounted for 5 percent of world output in 1998

(figure 2). Consumption of newsprint in Korea kept pace with production during 1994-97 as

a healthy economy fueled demand for newspapers. In late 1997 and 1998, however, the Asian

financial crisis worsened and the Korean economy entered into a severe recession, causing the

demand for newsprint to fall by 35 percent in 1998 compared with 1997. Remarkably, Korean

newsprint producers managed to increase production by 6 percent between 1997-98 by

shifting output to export markets, including the United States. Korea’s exports of newsprint,

which were minimal during 1994-96, increased to 256,000 metric tons in 1997 and then more

than tripled to 812,000 metric tons in 1998.90 These exports accounted for almost one-half of

Korean newsprint production in 199891 and for 5 percent of world newsprint exports (figure

4).

There are numerous producers of paper and paperboard in Korea, but not all of them produce

newsprint. Newsprint output in 1998 accounted for only 22 percent of total Korean output of

paper and paperboard; there was also significant production of printing and writing paper,

corrugating materials, and board.92 Reflecting a lack of forest resources, Korean newsprint

producers are heavily dependent upon wastepaper (domestic and imported) and imports of

pulp. Nevertheless, the Korean newsprint industry serves a domestic market that until the

Asian financial crisis was growing at a much faster rate than markets in the United States and

Europe. The industry also enjoys the benefits of new production machinery, with

approximately 50 percent of its newsprint capacity having been installed in the past 5 years.

Despite the newsprint industry’s ability to increase production and exports during the Korean

economic downturn in 1998, the industry, nevertheless, was unable to escape the effects of the

crisis. Producers experienced severe financial problems and even bankruptcy, which presented

Western newsprint producers with the opportunity to purchase relatively new production

assets and thus gain access to fast growing Asian newsprint markets. In July 1998, Bowater

Inc., a U.S. newsprint producer, purchased a Korean newsprint mill from Halla Pulp and

Paper Co. Ltd., which had earlier entered into bankruptcy. The purchase price reportedly was

well below the cost of building the mill. This low-cost and modern mill will greatly expand

Bowater Inc.’s presence in Asia.93 In February 1999, Abitibi-Consolidated Inc., a Canadian

newsprint producer, Norske Skog, a Norwegian newsprint producer, and Hansol Paper Co.,

a Korean newsprint producer, formed a joint venture to create one of the largest newsprint

companies in Asia. Each producer owns one-third of the new company, the Pan Asian Paper

Co. (PAPCO). PAPCO consists of four modern and low-cost production facilities in Korea,
 

94 Abitibi-Consolidated Inc., “PAPCO,” found at

http://www.abicon.com/domino/aciweb2.nsf/(pages)/papco, retrieved Jan. 13, 2000.

 

95 “A-C, Norske Skog and Hansol Join Forces,” PIMA’s Papermaker, Aug. 1998, p. 10.

30

China, and Thailand.94 The largest of these production facilities is Hansol Paper Co.’s Chonju

mill in Chonju, Korea. The sale of this mill to the joint venture for $1.0 billion will provide

Hansol Paper Co. with the funds to carry out its restructuring plan.95
APPENDIX A

EXPLANATION OF TARIFF AND TRADE

AGREEMENT TERMS
A-2

TARIFF AND TRADE AGREEMENT

TERMS

In the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS), chapters 1 through 97 cover

all goods in trade and incorporate in the tariff nomenclature the internationally adopted

Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System through the 6-digit level of product

description. Subordinate 8-digit product subdivisions, either enacted by Congress or

proclaimed by the President, allow more narrowly applicable duty rates; 10-digit

administrative statistical reporting numbers provide data of national interest. Chapters 98 and

99 contain special U.S. classifications and temporary rate provisions, respectively. The HTS

replaced the Tariff Schedules of the United States (TSUS) effective January 1, 1989.

Duty rates in the general subcolumn of HTS column 1 are normal trade relations rates, many

of which have been eliminated or are being reduced as concessions resulting from the Uruguay

Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations. Column 1-general duty rates apply to all countries

except those listed in HTS general note 3(b) (Afghanistan, Cuba, Laos, North Korea, and

Vietnam) plus Serbia and Montenegro, which are subject to the statutory rates set forth in

column 2. Specified goods from designated general-rate countries may be eligible for reduced

rates of duty or for duty-free entry under one or more preferential tariff programs. Such tariff

treatment is set forth in the special subcolumn of HTS rate of duty column 1 or in the general

notes. If eligibility for special tariff rates is not claimed or established, goods are dutiable at

column 1-general rates. The HTS does not enumerate those countries as to which a total or

partial embargo has been declared.

The Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) affords nonreciprocal tariff preferences to

developing countries to aid their economic development and to diversify and expand their

production and exports. The U.S. GSP, enacted in title V of the Trade Act of 1974 for 10

years and extended several times thereafter, applies to merchandise imported on or after

January 1, 1976 and before the close of September 30, 2001. Indicated by the symbol "A",

"A*", or "A+" in the special subcolumn, the GSP provides duty-free entry to eligible articles

the product of and imported directly from designated beneficiary developing countries, as set

forth in general note 4 to the HTS.

The Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act (CBERA) affords nonreciprocal tariff

preferences to developing countries in the Caribbean Basin area to aid their economic

development and to diversify and expand their production and exports. The CBERA, enacted

in title II of Public Law 98-67, implemented by Presidential Proclamation 5133 of November

30, 1983, and amended by the Customs and Trade Act of 1990, applies to merchandise

entered, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after January 1, 1984.

Indicated by the symbol "E" or "E*" in the special subcolumn, the CBERA provides duty-free

entry to eligible articles, and reduced-duty treatment to certain other articles, which are the

product of and imported directly from designated countries, as set forth in general note 7 to

the HTS.
A-3

Free rates of duty in the special subcolumn followed by the symbol "IL" are applicable to

products of Israel under the United States-Israel Free Trade Area Implementation Act of

1985 (IFTA), as provided in general note 8 to the HTS. 

Preferential nonreciprocal duty-free or reduced-duty treatment in the special subcolumn

followed by the symbol "J" or "J*" in parentheses is afforded to eligible articles the product

of designated beneficiary countries under the Andean Trade Preference Act (ATPA), enacted

as title II of Public Law 102-182 and implemented by Presidential Proclamation 6455 of July

2, 1992 (effective July 22, 1992), as set forth in general note 11 to the HTS.

Preferential free rates of duty in the special subcolumn followed by the symbol "CA" are

applicable to eligible goods of Canada, and rates followed by the symbol "MX" are applicable

to eligible goods of Mexico, under the North American Free Trade Agreement, as provided

in general note 12 to the HTS and implemented effective January 1, 1994 by Presidential

Proclamation 6641 of December 15, 1993. Goods must originate in the NAFTA region under

rules set forth in general note 12(t) and meet other requirements of the note and applicable

regulations.

Other special tariff treatment applies to particular products of insular possessions (general

note 3(a)(iv)), products of the West Bank and Gaza Strip (general note 3(a)(v)), goods

covered by the Automotive Products Trade Act (APTA) (general note 5) and the Agreement

on Trade in Civil Aircraft (ATCA) (general note 6), articles imported from freely

associated states (general note 10), pharmaceutical products (general note 13), and

intermediate chemicals for dyes (general note 14).

The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (GATT 1994), pursuant to the

Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, is based upon the earlier GATT 1947

(61 Stat. (pt. 5) A58; 8 UST (pt. 2) 1786) as the primary multilateral system of disciplines

and principles governing international trade. Signatories' obligations under both the 1994 and

1947 agreements focus upon most-favored-nation treatment, the maintenance of scheduled

concession rates of duty, and national treatment for imported products; the GATT also

provides the legal framework for customs valuation standards, "escape clause" (emergency)

actions, antidumping and countervailing duties, dispute settlement, and other measures. The

results of the Uruguay Round of multilateral tariff negotiations are set forth by way of

separate schedules of concessions for each participating contracting party, with the U.S.

schedule designated as Schedule XX. Pursuant to the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing

(ATC) of the GATT 1994, member countries are phasing out restrictions on imports under

the prior "Arrangement Regarding International Trade in Textiles" (known as the Multifiber

Arrangement (MFA)). Under the MFA, which was a departure from GATT 1947

provisions, importing and exporting countries negotiated bilateral agreements limiting textile

and apparel shipments, and importing countries could take unilateral action in the absence or

violation of an agreement. Quantitative limits had been established on imported textiles and

apparel of cotton, other vegetable fibers, wool, man-made fibers or silk blends in an effort to

prevent or limit market disruption in the importing countries. The ATC establishes

notification and safeguard procedures, along with other rules concerning the customs

treatment of textile and apparel shipments, and calls for the eventual complete integration of

this sector into the GATT 1994 over a ten-year period, or by Jan. 1, 2005.

 

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