MEDIA RELEASE PR37977
RISI's International Woodfiber Report Cautions 'US South Woodfiber Crisis to Persist'
BOSTON, Jan. 22 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ --
Today RISI, through its International Woodfiber Report (IWR), indicated that
woodfiber availability in the US South will remain at "crisis levels" for some time
to come. The report stated that even though prices have remained muted, there remain
widespread inventory shortages and that most wood stockpiles have dwindled to
critical lows. IWR also reports that it will take several weeks "at best" for a
return to stability, but that for the time being, prices are being held down by a
series of facilities shutting down for maintenance. The report notes that while it is
possible that prices have peaked, it would only take a few additional days of wet
conditions to force mills to choose between outages or higher woodfiber prices.
Chris Lyddan, Executive Editor of the International Woodfiber Report, comments,
"Open market prices across the US South in the fourth quarter gained an average of
$3/ton, or 9%, for roundwood and chips, compared to the third quarter, yet were 8%
below the same period a year ago." He continued, "On a cost basis, however, some
multi-mill companies experience higher 'all in' woodfiber expenses in December-
January due to substantial internal volumes traveling great distances between
supporting, sister mills, often landing at $45-50/ton, 10-20% above fourth quarter
averages."
The International Woodfiber Report is a monthly publication that reports on North
American woodfiber prices, supply and demand. A one-year subscription to the
International Woodfiber Report can be purchased for $597 at www.risi.com/wf , by
calling 866.271.8525, or by sending an email to wt@risi.com.
About RISI
RISI is the leading information provider for the global forest products industry.
The company works with clients in the timber, wood biomass, pulp and paper, wood
products, tissue, nonwovens, printing and publishing industries to help them make
better decisions.
Headquartered in Boston (Bedford), Massachusetts, RISI operates offices in
Brussels, Belgium; Atlanta, Georgia; San Francisco, California; Portland, Oregon; Sao
Paulo, Brazil; Shanghai, China; Helsinki, Finland; Singapore; and Charlottesville,
Contact:
Dan Blenk
Director of Marketing Wood & Timber Information
RISI
4 Alfred Circle, Bedford MA 01730 U.S.A.
Tel: +1.781.734.8942
Email: dblenk@risi.com
SOURCE: RISI
CONTACT: Dan Blenk,
Director of Marketing Wood & Timber Information of RISI,
+1-781-734-8942,
dblenk@risi.com
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