Shares of International Paper (IP) and its competitors are rallying Thursday after company executives issued a bullish outlook on the paper industry.

CEO BULLISH ON DEMAND: Speaking at the Vertical Research Partners Global Materials Conference on Thursday, International Paper CEO Mark Sutton said, "We like the market right now across the world. Demand continues to be steady. The U.S. box demand has been about 1.5% -- we'd like it to be more, but that's a good, steady demand. And containerboard for boxes globally has also been growing." Additionally, following news in recent months of a $50 per ton price hike on October 1 across the major containerboard and paper companies, Sutton commented today that the company is now focused on getting that increase "fully implemented through the entire chain," a process which he "feels good about." The CEO also remarked that current industry fundamentals -- supply and demand dynamics, market growth, overall cost structure, and inventory levels -- support the price raise.

PRICE ACTION: After briefly spiking up to trade near $49, shares of International Paper are up 0.9% to $48.35. Competing companies KapStone Paper and Packaging (KS), Packaging Corp (PKG), and WestRock (WRK) are up 4.3%, 0.9% and 0.4%, respectively.