European Paper Industry statistic: Successful year for the European cellulose and paper industry in 1999

The Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI) published its annual statistic for 1999. Production of paper and cardboard increased by more than 35%. CEPI reports that global production increased by an estimated 22% in the last 10 years. This means that 28% of global production volume is manufactured in CEPI countries (North America 32% and Asia 29%). European exports of paper and cardboard increased by 4.3% to 10.3 M tonnes in 1999; 20% was exported to North America, 18% to Eastern Europe and the remainder to Asia. CEPI recorded a positive trend for cellulose production in 1999. Production volumes of wood cellulose reached a record level of 38.2 M tonnes (+0.6%). European consumption of waste paper increased by 3.8% to 38.5 M tonnes. Collections in Europe increased by 6% and amounted to 40.7 M tonnes.