May 26, 2010. /Lesprom Network/. Myllykoski’s consolidated net sales for January-March 2010 totalled Euro 245 million, which is 24.5% less than in the corresponding period in 2009 (Euro 325 million). The decrease in net sales was due to the sale of the Utzenstorf and Alsip mills in 2009, as well as to low paper prices in the first quarter of 2010. Total deliveries in January-March 2010 amounted to 408,000 tonnes, compared to 479,000 in the corresponding period in 2009, company said in a statement received by Lesprom Network. The operating profit was Euro 13 million, which represents 5.3% of net sales. The operating profit for the first three months of 2009 was Euro 8 million. The operating profit for 2010 includes a profit of Euro 18 million from the sale of a hydro power plant in Madison, USA. The operating loss was Euro 5 million without non-recurring items. In addition to low paper prices, the result was weakened by the prices of pulp and recycled fibre, which were significantly higher than in the previous year. The profit before tax for January-March 2010 amounted to Euro 9 million, compared with a loss of Euro 2 million in January-March 2009. The loss before tax without nonrecurring items for January-March 2010 was Euro 9 million. The profit for January-March 2010 was Euro 10 million, compared with a loss of Euro 2 million in the corresponding period in 2009. The result without non-recurring items was negative, representing a loss of Euro 7 million. The Group’s equity ratio on 31 March 2010 was 27.3%, the same as a year earlier. The equity ratios with the capital loans included in the shareholders' equity were 31.1% and 31.4%. Myllykoski is a family-owned international paper group with manufacturing in Finland, Germany and the United States. Myllykoski products consist of wood-containing uncoated and coated publication papers, including newsprint.