Uncoated Groundwood N.A. Prices up in April, but Below Announcements

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Uncoated groundwood N.A. list prices in April rose for both offset and supercalendered (SC) grades, reports Marke Wilde, senior analyst with Deutsche Bank. Wilde notes that 35-lb MF offset rose $5/ton to $580-$600/ton and SC-A rose ˜$10/ton to $750/ton. Producers had announced a $30/ton price increase on SC grades for April.

Since most of the SC-A shipments are on contract basis with customers having price protection, the full impact of the price increase will show only in July, Wilde explains, adding that SC-B, however, is mostly non-contract in the first half and prices were +$25/ton to $670-$700/ton in April. SC-B also benefited from substantially improved demand, capacity rationalization, and higher spot prices. "With the SC-B market tight, reports suggest that producers are considering another hike in July," Wilde says.