Sales of newsprint fell 15% from the same time last year to 261m and fine papers sales dropped 12% to 498m, although packaging board sales were up 11% to 493m. Overall turnover fell by 3% to 2bn.

The Finnish-Swedish producer, which overtook International Paper as the worlds largest paper and board producer earlier this month, suffered a 42% fall in net profits to 87m.

"The outlook for our main markets still remains challenging, with no visible signs of improvement in print advertising, particularly in the USA," said chief executive Jukka Hrml.