MeadWestvaco Suing NewPage

 http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-06-25/houghton-ritz-camera-hostess-dewey-bicent-bankruptcy.html

MeadWestvaco is suing NewPage for alleged breach of contract over asbestos liabilities specified in an equity and asset purchase agreement between the two companies.

The liabilities were assumed when NewPage was formed in 2005 through its $2.05 billion purchase of MeadWestvaco's coated paper business.

NewPage has told MeadWestvaco it is rejecting the agreement, which says NewPage must "defend and indemnify" MeadWestvaco for asbestos injury claims arising from the businesses transferred to NewPage.

Norske Skog Invests in Halden

Norske Skog invests a quarter of a billion in Halden: Norske Skog will invest NOK 220 million in an expansion and renewal of the thermo-mechanical pulp plant at Norske Skog Saugbrugs in Halden. The old pulp plant will be replaced by a modern facility, which will supply pulp to the paper machines at a much lower cost than today.

Indian Company Buys Terrace Bay Pulp

http://blogs.wsj.com/dealjournalindia/2012/07/06/indias-birla-group-to-buy-canadas-terrace-bay-pulp-mill/

India’s Aditya Birla Group Thursday said it will acquire Canada’s Terrace Bay Pulp Mill Inc. for an undisclosed amount.

Since January, the mill has been under the protection of a Canadan law that allows financially troubled firms to restructure and avoid bankruptcy.

Aditya Birla plans to convert the mill to produce a different kind of pulp than it was previously producing.

IBISWorld; Direct Mail Recovering from Recession

Direct Mail Advertising Hurt Less by, Rebounding from the Recession Says IBISWorld: The recession caused demand for the direct mail advertising industry to fall as businesses cut costs to maintain profit...For marketers that want to target a specific group or niche market, direct forms of advertising are often more cost effective than traditional advertising. Direct mail advertising displays relatively low volatility, suffering less in a downturn because many businesses substitute their traditional advertising methods with cheaper, broader-reaching advertising methods...When the economy slows and businesses trim marketing budgets, marketers turn to more cost-effective and targeted forms of promotion. While fewer funds are allocated to marketing across the board, the proportion devoted to direct mail grows; in essence, the industry takes a larger slice of a smaller pie. This factor helped distance the industry from the declines experienced by the wider advertising sector during the recession...During the five years to 2017, industry revenue is expected to increase. For more information, visit IBISWorld’s “Direct Mail Advertising in the US: Market Research Report” page.

USPS Begins Closings

USPS begins consolidating processing facilities: Washington, D.C.—The U.S. Postal Service this week began to consolidate and close processing plants to cut expenses. Up to 48 service facilities will be impacted over the next two months. The USPS plans to close about 140 plants in its next fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1, and another 90 the following year. In addition, the USPS is offering buyouts and retirement packages to 21,000 postmasters as well as 45,000 mail handlers.

USPS Customers Already Worried

With Cuts on the Way, Postal Service Customers Already Bemoan Delays: Even before the Postal Service begins closing hundreds of processing centers to cut costs, several businesses say they are beginning to see a decline in service. In Wisconsin, Publisher’s Diversified Mail Service, a direct marketing firm that sends out 50 million to 75 million pieces of mail a year, said there had been delays in getting promotions delivered on time.

Multichannel Retailers More Optimistic

http://www.retailcustomerexperience.com/article/196829/Study-Multichannel-retailers-expect-more-growth-than-online-only-stores

Online-only and multichannel retailers both expect growth in the next year, according to new research from Eccomplish, which found about 73 percent of them are anticipating growing revenues anywhere between 1 and 20 percent. That compares with the 79 percent of multichannel retailers who expect the same growth, according to managementtoday.com.

An even wider gap exists between the 4 percent of online-only retailers who expect more than 50 percent growth and the 10 percent of multichannel retailers who are planning for it.

Study Reports H2 Private Sector Job Forecast

http://www.careerbuilder.com/share/aboutus/pressreleasesdetail.aspx?sd=7%2F5%2F2012&id=pr706&ed=12%2F31%2F2012

While the jobs recovery continues to lag that of previous recessions, the outlook for the back half of 2012 shows continued improvement over 2011. Forty-four percent of private sector employers reported they are planning to hire full-time, permanent staff from July 1 through December 31, 2012, an increase of nine percentage points over the same period last year.