Buyers are reporting that benchmark northern bleached softwood kraft (NBSK) pulp prices delivered to the U.S. East and Midwest markets are stuck in the $510-$520/metric ton range. Reason: Weak pulp demand from paper mills in an oversupplied market.

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NBSK pulp reached a two-year peak of $665 in February and has been sliding ever since. Even when the mills adjusted their effective list prices downward to $630-$640 in October, transaction tags have stayed lower. Paperloop.com is reporting, for example, that sales in the East, "which is often the most competitively pricing region on the domestic market," are reported levels hovering around $500/metric ton. Buyer surveys show Southern bleached softwood kraft (SBSK) spot prices stuck in a $500-$510 range since August. Producers are telling the trade press they are fully committed to implementing a price hike in regular contract business, but buyers deny that is happening.

"Pulp and paper industry pricing is down although producers keep calling for increases," says the materials manager for an office products producer in Wisconsin. "This is supposed to be the peak period for paper products buying, but not this year." Another buyer tells Purchasingdata.com that large volumes of foreign paper are undercutting domestic-mill sales—keeping downward pressure all the way back to pulp.