This study covers paper, board, pulp, tissue, newsprint, printing and writing paper. It also examines production/consumption of P&P in China, production volumes, and international trade by sector. Includes forecasts, foreign players and mill profiles.
Paper has a long history in China. Many scholars believe that the Chinese invented paper. China’s paper industry has been a world leader since the late 1970s when the country began to open up to the outside world under the reforms of Deng Xiaoping. Since then production and consumption have increased more than fivefold. In the last decade, China’s paper industry has received over US$ 1 billion from international financial institutions, foreign governments and foreign direct investment into the paper and pulp industry which has resulted in over 100 joint ventures. Additionally, the World Bank has provided over US$ 600 million since 1980 to finance the establishment of forest plantations to permit the industry to be more self-reliant and produce better quality grades. According to official statistics there are still in excess of 5,000 pulp and paper mills in China. However, most of these are small non-wood fibre mills operating without chemical recovery or effluent treatment systems. Consequently, water pollution levels are a significant problem. As China has developed so sectors such as stationery, tissue and newsprint have all grown in terms of consumption and production.