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Newspapers' Bad News in U.S. Gets Worse, Courtesy of Trade Spat

Updated on
  • U.S. may impose 15%-25% duty on imported newsprint in January
  • ‘Killer’ cost increase for industry already hurt by lost sales
Newsprint prices have jumped since October to a three-year high.

Newsprint prices have jumped since October to a three-year high.

Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

As if the U.S. newspaper business didn’t have enough trouble coping with decades of lost readers and advertising dollars. An escalating trade dispute with Canada is poised to make every edition cost a lot more to publish.

Newsprint prices have jumped since October to a three-year high and may keep increasing if, as expected, the administration of President Donald Trump slaps duties on imported paper from Canada next month. America’s northern neighbor accounts for about three quarters of what gets used in the U.S., from the Wall Street Journal to local news providers like the Idaho Press-Tribune.