RISI News

Recovered Paper Prices Expected to Hit Record High

BOSTON, June 18 PRNewswire — Prices for recovered paper will ascend to a new peak in 2009 following a sustained increase in paper and paperboard output and recovered paper consumption, says David Clapp, Senior Economist of Recovered Paper at RISI.

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Clapp reveals his expectations for the recovered paper industry in RISI's most recent quarterly World Pulp & Recovered Paper Forecast, identifying the West as the primary driving force behind the surge in output. The United States' single largest export is waste paper, sending the majority of it — over nine million tonnes annually — to China.

China is the biggest buyer of recovered fiber in the world and is rapidly increasing their recovered paper mills' capacities to meet the tremendous demand. Chinese recovered paper producer Nine Dragons plans to double its capacity to nearly ten million tonnes by 2009, while Lee & Man Paper strives to top five million tonnes in that same year.

Because of the soaring price of recovered paper, Clapp predicts producers will begin to seek out alternative sources of fiber and invest into virgin (containing no recycled fibers) pulping capacity. He believes that although recovered paper will still play a dominant role in papermaking, new investments into recovered paper will decelerate while other pulp options are explored. Clapp specifies, "Pulp sources like bamboo and eucalyptus in South Asia and Latin America and spruce and fir in Russia will be an increasingly attractive alternative to recovered paper as we move through the current decade."

Clapp's complete forecast and analysis of global recovered paper markets is available in RISI's latest World Pulp & Recovered Paper Forecast. For further information on the forecast, visit http://www.risiinfo.com/pulp5year.

About RISI

RISI is the leading information provider for the global forest products industry. RISI works with clients in the pulp and paper, wood products, timber, tissue, and nonwovens industries to help them make better decisions. Headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts, RISI operates offices in Brussels, Belgium; Atlanta, Georgia; San Francisco, California; Portland, Oregon; Sao Paulo, Brazil, Shanghai, China; Singapore; and Charlottesville, Virginia. To learn more, visit http://www.risiinfo.com.

Contact: Mary Di Nino Tel: 781.734-8972 Cell: 617.872-7072 Email: mdinino@risiinfo.com

SOURCE RISI

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