Over 5 million tonnes of global newsprint capacity at risk of closure

BOSTON, May 23, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- RISI, the leading information provider for the global forest products industry, today announced a high risk of closure for over 2 million tonnes of the 7 million total tonnes of newsprint capacity in North America over the next 5 years. These closures as well as 2.5 million tonnes of shuts in Western Europe and over 1 million tonnes in Asia will become necessary as newsprint demand declines across the globe, according to the recently released Global Newsprint Risk of Closure Study.

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"Declines in newspaper circulation in developed economies over the last decade – due largely to media tablets and mobile devices – will continue over the next several years," said John Maine, RISI's VP of Graphic Paper.

"This soft demand in Europe and North America, combined with new machines coming online in Asia are creating an increasingly competitive global marketplace. North America, where the export market has come to account for over 30% of shipments, faces the toughest challenges."

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The above chart is taken from RISI's Global Newsprint Risk of Closure Study. It indicates the company and machine (names withheld for this release) risk of closure compared to the industry average in the North American Newsprint market.

The Global Newsprint Risk of Closure Study uses a range of company and machine risk criteria to identify the newsprint machines most likely to close by 2016 in North America, Europe and Asia.  It indicates forced and likely proactive closures, as well as potential conversions and divestments.

The study finds that mills in North America and Europe that are highly reliant on recycled newsprint as a fiber source are at the greatest risk of closure.  This is due to the increased demand for recycled fiber driven by Asian producers combined with a decreasing supply caused by the decline of newspapers in North America and Western Europe.

To view all companies covered in the study, visit www.risi.com/gnr .

About RISI (www.risi.com)

Owned by UBM plc, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange, RISI is the leading information provider for the global forest products industry. The company works with clients in the pulp and paper, wood products, timber, biomass, tissue, nonwovens, printing and publishing industries to help them make better decisions.

Headquartered in Boston, MA, RISI operates additional offices throughout North and South America, Europe and Asia.

About UBM plc (www.ubm.com)

UBM plc is a leading global company. We inform markets and bring the world's buyers and sellers together at events, online, in print and provide them with the information they need to do business successfully. We focus on serving professional commercial communities, from doctors to game developers, from journalists to jewelry traders, from farmers to pharmacists around the world. Our 6,000 staff in more than 30 countries are organized into specialist teams that serve these communities, helping them to do business and their markets to work effectively and efficiently.

For Press Enquiries, please contact:

Thom Smith
Dir. Marketing
O: +1-781-734-8990
E: tsmith@risi.com