Business

Smurfit-Stone Container Corp, the North American containerboard manufacturer, expects its restructuring process to be completed during the first half of 2009.

The company had about 140 box plants when it began its restructuring process in 2005 and will end up with about 100 plants when the process ends next year, president Steven Klinger told the Reuters Paper Summit.

It has cut about 5,700 jobs since it started the restructuring programme.

Klinger said: "We'll have some lingering effects with one or two plant (closures) in the second-quarter of next year, but most of it will be done by the end of March."

He said that a weak US dollar and strong exports had helped keep the company's mills operating normally, even as the company has been reducing its box plant capacity.

The box plants are likely to begin to consume more of the company's containerboard capacity, once the realignment is complete, he added.

Smurfit-Stone and its counterparts have implemented a $55 per ton price increase in containerboard prices and are in the process of implementing a similar increase on box products.

"We are very focused on the $55 and the subsequent increase on the box side. If inventories remain at levels that they are at; if people are still experiencing cost inflation and if there's some sort of bump in demand, then obviously there will be additional price restoration," said Klinger.