MELBOURNE, Australia: IndustryEdge’s market data and intelligence service, Pulp & Paper Edge is now being produced twice per month, to keep subscribers updated with latest intelligence and data series. Responding to a dramatic increase in subscriber queries and requests for data, in addition to the traditional end of month edition,… Read More
Pulp prices respond to vagaries of global demand
Global market pulp prices continue to defy the commodity trends, remaining high in April as inter-sectoral demand balances continue to change. In the main Chinese market, shown in Figure 1, Bleached Softwood Kraft (BSK) pulp prices rose USD20/t on average to USD610/t, while Bleached Eucalypt Kraft (BEK) pulp prices shifted… Read More
March paper imports unaffected by pandemic
Imports of paper, paperboard and converted paper products to Australia were valued at AUD211.5M in March 2020, up 1.3% on a year earlier and 5.0% on February. Because of the time lag between orders, shipment and imports actually landing in Australia, the impact of COVID-19 was not evident in the… Read More
Housing & Sawnwood Consumption Crunch Still to Come
In March 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic gripped the global economy, there were 15,386 new dwellings approved in Australia, a reduction of just 0.8 percent on February and 2.0 percent higher than in March 2019. It now seems certain that had the pandemic not impacted confidence in the latter part… Read More
Paper imports continued to trend down in February
Printing & Communication paper annual imports declined for the fifth successive month in February. Imports totalled 20,979 tonnes in February 2020, down 19% on the prior month and 36% lower than in February 2019. January imports had spiked, against the trend decline, with most major grades seeing increases, only to see imports… Read More
Japanese paper companies continue the pivot to packaging
Japanese paper and paperboard manufacturers are continuing their ‘pivot to packaging’, as 2019 production data details. Reported at 25.376 million tonnes for 2019, total production was down 2.6% on the prior year and fell below 26 million tonnes for the first time in at least thirty years. Most significantly, as… Read More
Retail Sales Up While Employment Crunched in March
Australian retail sales are projected to have exploded in March as many households hoarded everything from toilet paper to pasta as they prepped for the pandemic fuelled lockdown. Provisional data shows the value of sales rose a massive 8.2% compared to the prior month, lifting to a record AUD30.0 billion. Read More
Special Edition: Disruption unpacked for Australian and New Zealand paper and board industries
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA: Friday 17th April 2020. As the impact of the pandemic continues to reverberate throughout societies and economies, IndustryEdge has issued a mid-month special edition of its flagship Pulp & Paper Edge. Delivered in a ‘fast-to-market’ slide-deck format, the edition addresses the significant questions asked by many of the… Read More
Import disruptions minimal to date: COVID-19 Update
[Up to date at 5pm, AEDT: Wednesday 25th March 2020] At the time of writing IndustryEdge was not aware of any significant import supply disruptions in the paper and paperboard sector in Australia. The focus is on imports of Printing & Communication papers and the trade in Packaging & Industrial grades. The… Read More
China turns shipping back on, but that’s just a start
As the COVID-19 pandemic crisis continues and deepens globally, shipping and freight continue to be the life-blood for many nations. Beyond mere economics and trade, it is shipping and freight that delivers food and medical supplies to much of the world, every month. All eyes were turned to China as… Read More