Suppliers of brown corrugated case materials have announced plans to increase prices by up to €50/t from 1 October or 1 November.
Prices for these grades have declined over the summer due to lower demand as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Paper manufacturers now claim that activity on the market has increased, not only in Europe but also in overseas markets. Supply was getting tighter, not least because of maintenance stoppages taking place now, some of which have been postponed from the spring.
In the case of brown recycled containerboard, experts add that they have been facing higher costs for the recovered paper while at the same time prices for finished paper deteriorated.
However, converters are skeptical whether this increase can be put through, at least whether the full amount of €50 is achievable. Demand might have improved, but is still below the levels seen before the coronavirus pandemic. Especially demand from the industrial sector was still lagging behind.
