Weak demand hurts chances for uncoated free price hike

Demand in the US market boosted North American printing & writing grades to a 3.3% increase in the first quarter, including a 14.9% demand rise for coated groundwood and 7.7% boost for coated freesheet grades. However, US shipments of uncoated freesheet, the largest grade area in the sector declined 1.7%, or by 53,000 tons, over the first three months, including by 28,000 tons in March. The poor demand for uncoated freesheet evidently is concentrated in commercial printing grades where substitutions with coated freesheet are going on.