Woodpulp port stocks in Europe fall an estimated 10.1% in October over September, increase 5.0% year-over-year: Europulp

Diane Keaton

LOS ANGELES , November 22, 2013 (Industry Intelligence) – European woodpulp port stocks declined an estimated 115,707 tonnes in October over September, or 10.1%, to 1,029,956 tonnes, according to Europulp data released today.

This follows an 82,131 tonne month-over-month decrease in September. The October results mark the fifth straight month in which inventories surpassed 1 million tonnes, but they are nearly 200,000 tonnes lower than the recent peak, in August, of 1,227,794 tonnes.

Compared to October 2012, the October 2013 stocks increased an estimated 49,501 tonnes, or 5.0%.

The figures are less than certain because Europulp has estimated the October 2013 stocks for France and the U.K. It did the same in September 2013 but made no adjustments in today’s report. And for August, Europulp estimated the stocks for Belgium, the U.K., and Italy, but has made no subsequent changes.

Following are the country-by-country October 2013 figures, in tonnes, including the estimations: (respective October-over-September and year-over-year percentages in parentheses): Netherlands/Belgium — 422,886 (-19.9%; 14.8%); France — 100,917 (-26.1%; 13.2%), U.K. — 39,862 (-2.1%; -15.8%); Germany — 124,402 (-17.4%; -22.1%); Switzerland — 4,338 (-38.9%; -12.4%); Italy — 274,781 (10.8%; 1.6%); Spain — 62,770 (78.9%; 55.6%).

Stats perspective. Inventories were below 1 million tonnes in May 2013 (986,027 tonnes), March 2013 (971,897 tonnes), February 2013 (966,502), and three months in 2012, including November (920,856 tonnes, October (980,455 tonnes), and June (912,478 tonnes). June 2012’s figure marked the first time inventories had fallen below 1 million tonnes since 2010 and all of the monthly stocks in 2011 were above 1 million tonnes before declining overall in 2012.

September 2011’s 1,460,219 tonnes marked the first time since April 2009 that stocks had surpassed 1.4 million tonnes, and in October, November, and December of 2011 they were in the high 1.3 million tonne range, before falling to 1.2 million tonnes in January 2012.

Data background. Europulp figures describe stocks by location, but the numbers are already included in producer and consumer inventory data.

Europulp represents the associations of pulp sellers in Belgium, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, and the U.K. Europulp began including Spanish port stocks in its data in 2004, but its historical statistics for Spain revert back to January 2003. When Europulp began reporting statistics in 1999, it included only the Netherlands/Belgium, France, and the U.K.; the other countries have been added over the years.

As a result, it is not possible to accurately compare current data with previous years. That said, in the years since statistics became available in 1999, October port stocks, compared to those in September, have fallen in nine of the previous 14 years.

September port stocks, compared to those in August, have fallen in 12 of the previous 14 years, while in August-over-July, the stocks have risen in 12 of the previous 14 years.

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