Commodity Report

Many office grades have found better footing during the first quarter of 2012, according to sources. Prices are stabilizing after the sharp decline seen during the fourth quarter of 2011. Domestic sources are on firmer ground, and movement has stabilized in many regions of the United States.

Outside of the U.S., mills in Mexico had, for the most part, dropped out of the market toward the end of last year. However, as of early 2012, more office grades have been moving to Mexico’s tissue mills as they consume their inventoried raw material.

Additionally, the Mexican paper company Fabrica De Papel San Francisco S.A. de C.V. has announced it is installing a new tissue paper line that will consume recovered fiber exclusively. The company says it expects its new machine to be operational by mid-2013.
 

(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.)