According to the monitoring of the commodity market analysis system of SunSirs, the price of softwood pulp remained stable last week, while the price of hardwood pulp slightly increased. On May 23rd, the average market price of softwood pulp in Shandong Province was 6,300 RMB/ton, which remained stable compared to the average price on May 18th. On May 23rd, the average market price of hardwood pulp in Shandong Province was 4,216.67 RMB/ton, an increase of 0.4% compared to the average price on May 18th.

On the supply side: Recently, important achievements were made in the Sino US Geneva economic and trade talks, and the bilateral tariff levels between China and the United States have been significantly reduced. Therefore, the future market for imported supplies will be eased and there is a possibility of an upward trend. The futures market rebounded and stopped falling, driving positive prices in the spot market and simultaneously transmitting them to the hardwood pulp market.

In terms of demand, the downstream raw paper market is currently showing an upward trend, and the operating rate of paper mills has increased compared to the previous period. Therefore, there is an expectation of an increase in demand for wood pulp in the future. But currently, most paper mills purchase according to demand, and there is no sign of large-scale procurement.

Domestic port data: Last week, the inventory level maintained a trend of destocking. As of May 22, 2025, the sample inventory of mainstream pulp ports in China was 2.157 million tons, a decrease of 1.9% compared to the previous period's destocking of 41,000 tons. This week, the inventory of pulp at Qingdao Port, a mainstream domestic port, showed a trend of destocking. The daily average shipment speed in the port increased to 15,000 tons/day, and the main source of goods at the port is still hardwood pulp; Changshu Port has slightly accumulated inventory, with shipments exceeding 100,000 tons within the week; The inventory levels at other ports have not changed significantly and fluctuate within the normal range.

In terms of futures: Last week, the price of pulp futures rose more or fell less. As of May 23, the opening price of the main contract sp2507 pulp futures on the Shanghai Futures Exchange was 5,418 RMB/ton, the closing price was 5,464 RMB/ton, and the highest price was 5,478 RMB/ton, with a daily increase of 1.22%. The trading volume was 214,600 lots, and the position was 98,738 lots.

The wood pulp analyst from SunSirs believes that the current easing of tariffs between China and the United States has led to a positive performance in pulp futures prices, which has boosted the spot market for wood pulp. Whether the price can remain stable at a high level still needs to be observed, and it is expected that the short-term wood pulp price will remain in a range of fluctuations.

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