Stora Enso‘s fourth quarter operating profits are expected to be 50% down on the third quarter of 2003 due to a number of factors, the company has revealed in a trading update.
The decrease is due to lower margins from overseas sales; the impact of a falling US dollar; holiday season shutdowns in its Nordic mills; the paper workers’ union strike in Finland during December; the cost of mill redundancy measures; and delays in some investment start-ups.
The company said it also lost €68.5m on non-recurring items, including a US$16.4m write-down for expected capital loss on the sale of forestland in Ontario and US$61.1m due to the provision for expected losses from the termination of the US cross-border leasing contracts.
Stora Enso’s fourth quarter and full year results will be released on February 4.
