Cellulose consumers are returning to the negotiating tables with suppliers after a year start of the year when the US comings and goings around their import tariffs caused an environment of uncertainty, making it difficult to establish prices for the base product for paper production.
“In the very short term, things are a little uncertain, we are in time for price discovery, but since last week we have received a frequent demand from customers to discover this new price,” said Suzano’s vice president, Marcos Assumpção, meeting with journalists on Wednesday (20).
“The macro environment has been calming rapidly since last week after the tariffs came to a slightly lower level,” said the executive during a presentation of the world’s largest eucalyptus pulp producer in the world.
The executive referred to the hit, valid for 90 days, between the United States and China, which reduced reciprocal import tariffs in an understanding that exceeded expectations from observers from the two largest economies in the world.
At the time, the US agreed to reduce their overcrowders from Chinese products from 145% to 30% and while Beijing agreed to cut the percentage charged from 125% to 10%.
Assumpção quoted that Suzano has not noticed a reduction in China’s growth and is still betting on an economy expansion of around 4% to 5% this year.
Asked if the 90 -day truce in the trade war could generate more volatility, facing the racing of importers to take advantage of the reduced rates before eventual startle at the end of the deadline, the executive mentioned that the company is not seeing fear of the market.
“Most market agents seem to believe that we have reached a point of equilibrium” in tariffs, he said.
