Is the price increase for containerboard in Italy only cost-driven?

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Corrugated case material prices in Italy have risen after the recent jump in energy prices. Some market players feel, however, that demand is slowing down.

The after-effects of March's energy price shock are still reverberating among paper manufacturers. And they have opened the door to another price hike on Italy's recycled corrugated case material market. A few paper mills had temporarily curbed or suspended production after costs skyrocketed in early March, leading paper manufacturers to unveil a fresh round of price rises to offset spiralling natural gas costs. In a best-case scenario, manufacturers managed to charge more for deliveries from the second half of March onwards. However, most customers did not have to shell out more for deliveries before April.

Market players differed in their opinions about the current state of the market and thus about ordering and paper manufacturers' workloads. While a few producers told EUWID that demand remained healthy and outstripped supply, other paper manufacturers mentioned a palpable slump in demand and a much more relaxed market than just a few weeks ago. When instituting higher prices, the paper industry had focused more on costs than demand as their rationale, one paper producer stated.

This article is an excerpt from our latest market and price report on the paper and board markets in Italy in April. Subscribers can acces the report here.

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