The result of decreasing demand publication papers in the US may seem quite illogic: higher prices. According to the April issue of The Reel Time Report average coated groundwood prices [for 40# #5] may drop below $800/ton in 2012, but will not get close to the 2009 low point of $730/ton. In fact, the current cyclical decline might be the last one in which coated groundwood pricing falls below $800/ton. Furthermore, it states that newsprint will never fall below $500/tonne again, and will probably spend little time below $600/ton.
The phenomenon means higher pricing “floors” for publication papers in future down markets. According to The Dead Tree Edition, this result is akin to predictions that printed magazines will continue to exist for the foreseeable future.
