ISRI Spotlight: Scrap Paper Prices Reacted Sharply to Covid-19 Pandemic

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The recently held Institute of Recycling Industries (ISRI) Spotlight on Paper outlines the short-term and long-term impacts of Covid-19 pandemic on scrap paper prices.

Providing an overview of the recovered fiber sector, Joe Pickard, Director of Commodities at ISRI noted that recovered paper prices have surged higher by almost 50% in April, compared with the prior month. As compared with the previous year, the prices are up by almost 40%. With reference to data released by the American Forest and Paper Association (AF&PA), nearly 49.2 million tons of paperboard was recycled in 2019. This compares with 52.7 million tons recycled in 2018. The recovered paper exports had dropped by 13.6%, mainly on account of restrictions imposed by the Chinese administration.

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The preliminary estimates provided by John Dunham & Associates indicate that the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in loss of nearly 8,000 direct jobs in the entire U.S. paper recycling industry.

The ISRI meet noted that drastic change in consumer habits since March this year is likely to impact the entire paper recycling sector in the near future, especially tissue, packaging pulp and recovered paper.