Spot prices of softwood pulp and hardwood pulp continued to drop this week. On October 21, the average price of softwood pulp in Shandong area was 5630 yuan/ton, which was reduced by 310 compared with the average price of softwood pulp in Shandong area at the beginning of the week (the average price of softwood pulp on October 17 was 5940 yuan/ton). Yuan/ton, a decrease of 5.22%. On October 21, the average price of hardwood pulp in Shandong region was 4480 yuan/ton, which was lower than the average price of hardwood pulp in Shandong region at the beginning of the week (the average price of hardwood pulp on October 17 was 4590 yuan/ton in Shandong region). 110 yuan/ton, down 2.4%.
From the observation of market changes, the spot price of wood pulp is still in a state of downward adjustment this week, and the price of pulp futures also continues to decline. At present, the pulp market is still in a downturn. Affected by the sharp rise in the prices of coal, starch and other materials, the pressure on the production cost of enterprises has increased, and the overall start-up is still insufficient. The weakness of the spot market continues, and market sentiment is not high. Due to the weak cost support, the slurry price is further suppressed.
Pulp futures prices began to bottom out on October 20, and the price increase this time was mostly due to the fact that pulp futures fell for many days, buying replenishment sentiment appeared, and prices showed a correction pattern, but the general trend was still bearish. Coupled with the frequent issue of price increase letters in the downstream raw paper market, it has a certain degree of support for the cost of pulp prices. However, the current market pressure is still high, the port depot is slow, and the downstream demand is weak, so that the spot price of wood pulp cannot be boosted, and the pressure on the supporting surface of pulp cost remains weakened.
In terms of futures, on October 21, the opening price of the Shanghai Futures Exchange's pulp futures sp2111 contract was 5350 yuan/ton, and it was settled yesterday at 5294 yuan/ton, with 157,764 transactions and 65,458 holdings. The opening price of the sp2112 contract was 5238 yuan/ton, and it was settled yesterday at 5196 yuan/ton, with 86,373 lots traded and 110,797 open positions.
At present, the downstream start-ups are limited and the external market is not expected to be good. The market has a strong wait-and-see sentiment and few spot transactions. It is expected that the short-term pulp price may continue to be weak.