The second wave of the coronavirus pandemic in Poland and the partial lockdown introduced by the Polish government in November have had less of an impact on the paper and board industry than was initially feared.
In the worst case, incoming orders in recent months were described as unspectacular. In the best case, market participants said demand was going “through the roof.”
The winners during this pandemic include in particular companies from the corrugated board and packaging sector, while the Polish folding cartons industry has also performed quite well overall during this crisis.
Since the fourth quarter, a significant upturn has been observed in the uncoated fine paper segment. However, it was often the higher raw material and production costs and not the strong demand which prompted producers to initiate price negotiations.
Hikes have already been realized for brown corrugated case material and a mark-up has been announced for graphic papers and white lined chipboard. Another increase for kraftliner and white-top testliner also appears to be on the horizon.
