Average Paper Prices Much Lower Mid-Year

Data from the monthly Transaction Price Survey (TPS) conducted by Purchasing magazine, one of GAM's sister publications, shows that paper prices moved broadly lower between the first and second quarters of 2001. More limited preliminary data available for the third quarter of 2001 suggests that the price trend continued flat to down into early fall.

GAM regularly follows nine specific paper product groups out of the dozens that are covered by the survey. Average prices recorded during the second quarter of this year were exactly the same as they were during the first quarter of 2001 for two of those paper categories. Not a single category of paper recorded an increase in average prices during the first six months of this year. Average transaction prices declined most sharply over the quarter for the coated, #3, publication grade (-10.9%); offset, uncoated white (-5.8%); and bond, uncoated white, #4 (-4.8%) product groups.

Compared to the same month a year earlier, average transaction prices during June 2001 were lower for two-thirds of the paper products that GAM follows. Uncoated groundwood, directory grade (+7.4%); uncoated groundwood, offset (+6.7%); and newsprint (+4.5%) all cost more per ton this June than last June, although none of these product groups has recorded a price increase since January 2001. Average prices for the other six paper categories were down over the year, with particularly sharp drops recorded for coated, #3, publication grade (-12.8%); and bond, uncoated white, #4 (-7.0%).