Market analysts said price hikes are inevitable, though, since newsprint producers continue to lose so much money they will go out of business entirely without them.

"Mills have no choice but to raise prices," said Verle Sutton, publisher of the Reel Time Report, an analytical report and co-publisher of an industry forecast through 2022.

Market analysts said the year-over-year declines in total U.S. consumption and in consumption by U.S. daily newspapers stood out sharply in the PPPC report. Newsprint consumption declines were linked with continued declines in subscription rates, and Sutton provided figures from the Newspaper Association of America showing newspaper sales at their lowest point in 60 years - a time when population was less than half of what it is now.

U.S. newsprint demand was down 8% in April, while total North American demand was down 7.9%, the PPPC report said.

Mark Wilde, market analyst for Deutsche Bank, said in an emailed comment that publishers are likely to be increasingly resistant to further price hikes, but more increases are just as likely.

"Following AbitibiBowater's (ABH) announcement, White Birch, Catalyst and Tembec announced $60-per-metric-ton price hikes for the third quarter," Wilde said.

Helping to keep newsprint inventories in check are tight fiber supplies, Sutton said. The PPPC's reported operating rate in April of 91% of capacity compared with 94% last year, figures which are the same as the year-to-date figures.

Sutton said he didn't believe the lower operating rate was a function of a soft newsprint market, but since chip supplies are down because of reduced lumber production in response to a very weak housing market, newsprint production was off.

And lumber market analysts said lumber production was likely to remain depressed for many months as the country works its way out of the housing crisis.

Finland's index provider FOEX reported its North American 30-pound newsprint price index was at $650.01, up $2.61 from the previous week and up $83.42 for the year.

FOEX also said its index for 27.7-pound newsprint in the U.S. was $691.77 a ton, up $3.21 from a week ago and up $87.69 for the year.

FOEX reported its European newsprint index price was at EUR501.73, down EUR0.30 from a week ago and EUR32.07 lower than on Jan. 1.

Pulpandpaper.net reported 30-pound North American newsprint at $620 to $640 a ton, unchanged from April 1.

-By Lester Aldrich, Dow Jones Newswires; 913-322-5179; lester.aldrich@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires