Newsprint prices set after tight negotiations<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The Association of Indonesian Pulp and Paper
\nProducers (APKI) and the Association of Indonesian Newspaper
\nPublishers (SPS) have agreed to cut the new price of newsprint to
\nbetween US$500 and $505 a ton.<\/p>\n
Minister of Industry and Trade Tunky Ariwibowo said yesterday
\nthat the new prices, which will be effective from Jan. 1 to March
\n31, were settled after lengthy and tight negotiations.<\/p>\n
The price of newsprint was last set at $535 a ton on Oct. 3.<\/p>\n
Under the agreement, newsprint producer PT Aspex Paper will
\nsell newsprint for $505 a ton, while state-owned PT Kertas Letjes
\nwill sell it for $500 a ton. Other newsprint producers will sell
\nthe paper based on negotiations.<\/p>\n
The associations also agreed to use the average rupiah-dollar
\nexchange rate from the previous week as the base for
\ntransactions.<\/p>\n
The associations held three meetings prior to the agreement to
\nnegotiate prices. The Ministry of Industry and Trade acted as
\nmediator in the negotiations.<\/p>\n
Representatives of the two associations said yesterday they
\nwere satisfied with the new prices.<\/p>\n
\"We finally agreed on something that was fair. If we're going
\nto lose, we'll both lose, and vice versa if we profit,\" SPS
\nchairman Leo Batubara said yesterday.<\/p>\n
PT Aspex Paper president Lee Won Jie said the agreed price was
\ncostly to newsprint producers, but said his company would improve
\nefficiency to reduce production costs.<\/p>\n
\"This will save us from losing money,\" Lee said.<\/p>\n
The monetary crisis, which has lowered the value of the
\nrupiah by about 60 percent since July, has made newsprint
\nexpensive. The rupiah's depreciation partly contributed to the
\nrise in the newsprint price to Rp 6,025 per kilogram this month
\nas compared to Rp 1,254 per kilogram in January and Rp 1,304 per
\nkilogram in March this year.<\/p>\n
The sharp rise threatens the susceptible press industry which
\nhas already seen several publications shut down in the past
\nmonth.<\/p>\n
At least two major dailies had cut several pages because of
\nthe price hike.<\/p>\n
Batubara said the negotiations were tough because APKI
\ninsisted on adjusting the prices with the increase in production
\ncosts.<\/p>\n
\"APKI argued that production costs rose 80 percent, while we
\nestimated it at 27 percent,\" he said<\/p>\n
Lee said production costs rose sharply as producers had to
\nimport newsprint's raw material -- recycled newspapers.<\/p>\n
PT Aspex Paper has to allocate 7,500 tons of its product for
\nthe domestic market monthly, while PT Kertas Letjes will supply
\n3,500 tons locally every month.<\/p>\n
Other newsprint producers will provide 4,000 tons for the
\ndomestic supply. (das)<\/p>\n
Photo -- Page 10<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/newsprint-prices-set-after-tight-negotiations-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }