Rayonier Sees Cellulose, High-Yield Pulp Prices Rising — Commodity Comment

By Stephen Nakrosis

Rayonier Advanced Materials on Tuesday said it was expecting prices for cellulose specialties and high-yield pulp will increase in 2024, while prices for paperboard are expected to decline.
High Purity Cellulose Outlook

The average sales prices for cellulose specialties are expected to increase by a low single-digit percentage this year, compared to average sales prices in 2023, Rayonier said.
Demand for the company’s cellulose specialties will be mixed, with acetate expected to experience moderate destocking and ethers volumes expected to improve, “albeit at lower than historical levels,” the company said.
The company also said demand for its commodity products “remains resilient with fluff and viscose prices expected to improve from the fourth quarter of 2023, however not to the level of realized prices in early 2023.”
Paperboard Outlook
Paperboard prices are expected to decrease slightly this year as compared to the fourth quarter of 2023, while sales volumes are expected to improve, the company said, adding “raw material prices are expected to increase as purchased pulp prices are forecast to increase from fourth quarter 2023 levels.”
High-Yield Pulp
High-yield pulp prices are seen increasing in the first quarter this year, “as the company captures the value of higher index pricing from the latter part of the fourth quarter of 2023,” Rayonier said. It added “Sales volumes are also expected to increase in the first quarter as production is ramped up to meet customer demand.”
Write to Stephen Nakrosis at stephen.nakrosis@wsj.com