A new difficult
period for traditional printing press has been anticipated, since the newsprint
price has been increasing sharply, press agencies cannot raise newspaper prices
in the current circumstances, and where people all have to cut down expenses.

Paper price on continuous rise

Paper
producers and suppliers all have announced a new paper price hike wave after
they made a lot of efforts to maintain production, and only raised the paper
price slightly by five percent at the end of 2010.

However,
they have to give up the motto “keep prices stable to retain clients” and have
to raise the sale prices to cover the increasing expenses.

The Vietnam
Paper Corporation has announced that from April 15, the prices of printing and
writing papers would increase by 5.7 percent on average. Prior to that, since
March 1, 2011, the price of Bai Bang-made paper has increased by 5.7 percent.
Similarly, the price of paper made by Tan Mai group saw the prices increase two
times (10 percent for each time) since mid March 2011. The product is selling
at 16.1 million dong per ton of newsprint.

These prove
to be the cautious steps made by the two enterprises which  hold the biggest domestic market shares, while
small and medium enterprises have raised the sale prices continuously.

According
to Vu Ngoc Bao, Secretary General of the Vietnam Paper and Pulp Association,
producers have to raise the sale prices continuously because the material
prices (pulp and scrap paper) have been increasing sharply. Meanwhile, banks
have pushed the lending interest rates up to sky high levels, which are
unaffordable for many enterprises.

Paper price hike causes headache to
press agencies

Nguyen Van
Dong, Director of Tran Phu Printing Company, said that the price of Tan
Mai-made paper has increased three times since the beginning of the year, which
has forced the printing company to consider charging higher printing fees on
press agencies.

However, Dong admitted that it is impossible to raise the printing fees sharply
in accordance with the paper price increases. Meanwhile, he complained that not
only the paper price, but other input material prices have also increased, from
the electricity and water price, to the labor cost.

“The
printing costs have increased by 10-15 percent. We are conducting negotiations
with press agencies about the printing price increases,” Dong said.

Printing
press agencies complain that the printing cost increases have put more
difficulties for them, who now have to compete fiercely with new types of press

According
to Nguyen Huu Diep from the Lao dong va
Xa hoi journal (labor and the society), to date, he has not received any
notice from the printing house on the printing fee increases. However, in fact,
the printing fee has increased since 2010 already, while the distribution fee
has also increased since the beginning of 2011. Therefore, the price of the
journal has increased by 9500 dong to 10,000 dong.

Diep admitted
that it is impossible to raise the sale price of the journal at this moment,
because the journal may lose readers. “We will have to use the earnings from
other sources to offset the printing fee increases,” he said.

Meanwhile,
a representative from a printing press agency said he has received the notice
from the printing house on the printing fee increase of five percent. With the
new printing fees, the press agency will incur losses if it keeps the current
sale price of 3000 dong per 16 page copy.

He said
some press agencies are considering using lower quality paper or narrowing the
paper sizes to cut down expenses.

Dong said
that the best solution for now is that both printing houses and press agencies
have to share the difficulties.

Not only
press agencies, but publishing houses have also become worried stiff about the
paper price increases. Bui Tuan Nghia, Deputy Director of Kim Dong Publishing
House said the printing fees have increased by 14-20 percent so far this year
already, adding that the publishing houses will have to raise the sale prices
of books.

Buu Dien