According to the monitoring of the commodity market analysis system of SunSirs, the prices of wastepaper and corrugated paper showed opposite trends this week, with wastepaper prices stopping to rise and falling. On March 12th, the average purchase price of A-grade waste yellow cardboard in Zhejiang was 1,522 RMB/ton, a decrease of 2.19% compared to the average price on March 8th. The price of corrugated paper continued to rise and gradually stabilized. On March 12th, the average ex factory price of 140g corrugated paper was 2,764 RMB/ton, an increase of 1.47% compared to the average price on March 8th.

In terms of wastepaper: This week, the prices of wastepaper in domestic paper mills have fallen comprehensively. Due to the resumption of work in wastepaper packaging and recycling stations, logistics have returned to normal, which has led to the concentration of Spring Festival supply backlog in the market. In addition, with the improvement of rainy and snowy weather, transportation is no longer hindered, and the market supply is rapidly increasing. The arrival volume of paper mills continues to be high, and some areas are experiencing phenomena such as vehicle pressure and inventory saturation.

In terms of demand for wastepaper, March is the off-season for traditional packaging, so the willingness of paper mills to purchase wastepaper has weakened. In addition, the inventory of finished paper in paper mills is relatively high, and most of them focus on destocking, which will reduce the purchase volume of wastepaper and lower the purchase price.

In terms of corrugated paper, the increase in corrugated paper prices this week is a temporary corrective increase after resuming work. At the beginning of the week, top enterprises issued price increase letters, followed by widespread price increases in small and medium-sized paper mills, forming an industry coordinated price increase. With the comprehensive resumption of work in the paper mill, the operating rate has gradually increased, and there has not been a large-scale concentration of production in the market. The overall market supply is controllable.

In terms of demand for corrugated paper, downstream cardboard box factories and packaging factories have resumed work comprehensively. In order to meet daily production needs, they have started to replenish inventory and their enthusiasm for receiving goods has significantly increased compared to last week. The continuous release of price increase letters has caused downstream concerns about further price increases, prompting them to stock up in advance and accelerate paper mill shipments and price increases.

The paper analyst from SunSirs believes that the current price of wastepaper is still mainly adjusted weakly, and prices in East and South China may continue to be under pressure due to the continuous increase in arrivals and the lack of improvement in demand. The price of corrugated paper is gradually stabilizing, and this round of increase is mainly aimed at repairing the low level in the previous period and transferring costs, rather than a comprehensive outbreak of demand. The sustainability remains to be observed, and it is expected that the short-term prices of wastepaper and corrugated paper will temporarily digest the previous fluctuations.

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