Forest companies post $480M loss
VANCOUVER–Canada's 14 largest Canadian forest products companies lost a total of $480 million in the first quarter with B.C. firms hardest hit, a report shows.
The losses were $91 million more than the same quarter last year, when the overall losses were $381 million, as sales and prices continued to drop as a result of the recession.
Losses deepened in the most recent quarter despite a lower Canadian dollar compared to the U.S. currency, the consultancy said.
Western Canadian companies lost a total of $314 million in the January-March period, which was compared to losses of $312 million the same time last year faxless payday advances.
Losses in Eastern Canada widened to $166 million in the quarter compared losses of $77 million the year before.
By comparison, 10 of the largest public U.S.-based forest and paper companies posted cumulative losses of US$63 million in the first quarter of 2009.
That was a drop of US$429 million from earnings of US$366 million in the same period of 2008, the report said.