A Snapshot of PaperClips #95, Thursday, March 4, 2010
The Future of North American Forestry: Wood Products or Bio-Energy?
Source:
Montreal Gazette, February 25, 2010
A recent article in the Montreal Gazette examines the future of the Canadian forest products industry, using AbitibiBowater, the country's largest forest products company, as its example. Faced with the need to restructure approximately $6.5 billion of debt before emerging from creditor protection; declining demand for many of its products, such as newsprint; and growing pressure to create new biofuel uses for its wood, Abitibi- like much of the industry - must decide whether to: (1) transform its core business from producing wood, pulp and paper to making bio-mass and bio-chemicals, or (2) maintain wood and pulp as their core business and instead integrate biofuels into it as a by-product...
Strikes Threaten Finnish Recovery; Exports at Risk
Source:
Businessweek, March 2, 2010
A strike this week in Finland may theaten the country's economic recovery as it deals with halted goods transport and closed ports. The pending action would impede companies from transporting raw materials on trucks and finished products at ports. The strike would also affect long-distance and city bus traffic, garbage collection and fuel transport. Europe's two largest papermakers, Stora Enso and UPM-Kymmene Oyj, will be challenged to move raw materials and finished products and are trying to divert as many orders as possible from Finland to units outside the country to ensure timely deliveries...
Postal Service to Run Summer Sale Again in 2010
Source:
Multichannel Merchant, February 23, 2010
As a follow up to last year's program, the U.S. Postal Service 2010 “Summer Sale” will offer postage savings for any increased standard mail volume for certain catalog mailers. The USPS plans to submit a filing with the Postal Regulatory Commission for approval. According to Hamilton Davison, Executive Director for the American Catalog Mailers Association, the 2010 sale will be similar to last year's inaugural program...
Direct Marketing is Behind Chico's Strong Quarter, Year
Source:
Direct Magazine, February 24, 2010
Same-store sales rose while direct sales leapt for women’s apparel retailer Chico’s FAS. While the women's retailer’s same-store sales increased 6.1% over fourth-quarter 2008, its direct sales jumped 42%, increasing their share of total sales from 6% to 7.2%...
