China Paperboard imports down, but pulp up

by Paperboard Packaging

Guangdong province, southern China, imported 4.38 million metric tons of paper and paperboard in 2004, down 4.7 percent year-on-year, according to the customs service at Shenzhen, southern Guangdong.

Imports of paper pulp, used in paper production, rose 14.2 percent year-on-year to 1.03 million metric tons in 2004. Imports of waste paper stood at 3.94 million metric tons, up more than 20 percent year-on-year.

China removed customs tariffs on paper and pulp waste paper imports from the beginning of 1999 to stimulate paper processing in the country and to attract imports of raw materials, as China experiences shortages of timber for paper production.

Tariffs on imported paper or paper products currently vary between 2 and 13.8 percent of the import value.

The value of paper pulp imported to Guangdong in 2004 stood at $472 per metric ton, while the value of imported waste paper averaged $145 per metric ton. Prices of these materials have increased two years in a row.