Letters, feedback, get it off your chest: 1 December 2010

The year is almost over, so why not do something you haven’t done yet and write us a letter.

Re: Secret Japanese takeover bid for mag paper market
While it may be true that Japanese paper companies are “dumping” product, it doesn’t necessarily follow that this activity paints the grim future Robert Eastment sees for the printing industry.

If there were no other sources of supply, Robert’s conclusion would hold some validity. As it is, there is a surfeit of supply for just about all kinds of paper, and new supply continues coming on stream (take a look at China). At the same time the demand has shrunk (and may still be shrinking) in those parts of the world that are struggling to regain ground lost during the GFC. The result is as simple as it is predictable; prices fall.

The irony here is that it all mirrors the commercial print market – too much supply and declining demand, to which the suppliers only response is to drop prices. If there’s an easing of prices for paper, let’s hope printers are smart enough to keep as much of it as they can instead of stampeding into yet another new round of price-based competition.

On past form that’s a forlorn hope ...

Mark Reid

Japanese suppliers are suffering very slow domestic demand, a few big players have recently announced further production cut from already being reduced.

They have to sell more to overseas just to run the machine, and especially a few of big players are selling a lot with making no money. It is obvious if you look at their financials.  

Yumiko Kato