Global Capacity Shifts Accelerate Amid Trade Policy Volatility

 

Persistent trade policy uncertainty in 2025—driven by tariffs, geopolitical tensions, and shifting market access—made global pulp and paper trade flows increasingly reactive to policy signals. Capacity data from FisherSolve® highlights a widening regional divergence: while every region except North America posted year-over-year growth, North America lost nearly 6 million tons of capacity, led by a nearly 10% decline in U.S. containerboard capacity due to an extended wave of mill closures. Meanwhile, Asia Pacific added almost 16 million tons of capacity, reinforcing its growing dominance in global supply. In China, capacity additions were concentrated in containerboard and cartonboard (up 6% and 8%), but printing and writing paper capacity also expanded by almost 9%, defying perceptions of long-term structural decline.