Table 1:
Analysts' projections for 1998 (percentage change from 1997 levels).
Growth in
real GDP
Production
Paper Board
Operating rates
Paper Board
1
Prices
Paper Board
Unit
costs
2
Earnings
3
Paper Forest Prod.
Housing
starts
4
Matt Berler
Morgan Stanley
3.2%l
3.5%
3.8%
94.7%
96.7%
12.0%
15.0%
2.0%
85%
90%
1.38
Sherman Chao
Merrill Lynch
2.5
1.4
0.9
91.5
94.9
1.0
7.0
2.0
75
-15
1.40
Mark Connelly
J.P. Morgan
2.9
2.0
2.9
95.0
94.9
5.2
15.9
2.0
84
48
1.37
Chip Dillon
Salomon Smith Barney
2.5
2.5
2.5
95.5
96.0
14.0
15.0
3.0
100
5
1.36
Mark Diverio
UBS Securities
2.4
1.7
3.3
92.7
94.4
7.2
9.6
2.7
95
105
1.44
Mark Rogers
Prudential Securitie
2.5
2.4
2.8
94.1
96.5
11.4
25.1
0.1
187
253
1.40
Mark Weintraub
Goldman Sachs
3.0
2.7
2.5
93.5
95.5
8.0
10.0
2.5
200
-
1.44
William Wigder
Credit Suisse First Boston
3.1
2.2
2.0
94.0
95.0
12.0
15.0
2.0
80
60
1.32
Consensus average
2.8%
2.3%
2.6%
93.9%
95.5%
8.9%
14.1%
2.0%
113%
78%
1.39
1. Production as percent of capacity. 2. Cost/ton of output. 3. Earnings from operations excluding extraordinary and nonrecurring items.
4. Millions of units. Source: Pulp & Paper survey.
