Commodity Report

Office Grades Hold Their Ground
Deinking and office grades appear to be retaining their prices as of early July. Several handlers of these grades say that while most bulk grades (e.g., old corrugated containers, old newspapers) have been softening through the summer, deinking grades, office pack, coated book stock and some pulp substitutes have either remained stable or seen modest price increases. This follows a sharp price correction earlier this year when many deinking and office grades dropped by more than $50 per ton.

One source says office grades and deinking grades have benefited from a modest upswing in orders from Chinese mills. The improvement is coming despite the strengthening U.S. dollar, which has made exports from the United States more expensive.

On the domestic side, tissue mills are reportedly buying office grades while avoiding sorted white ledger.

(Additional information on secondary paper markets, including breaking news and consuming industry reports, is available from SDB’s sister publication Recycling Today at www.RecyclingToday.com.