Brazil’s Suzano Raises Asian Pulp Price by US$20 a Tonne From September
BRAZIL · BUSINESS
Key Facts
What happened: Suzano, the world’s largest eucalyptus pulp maker, is raising its Asian pulp price by US$20 a tonne from September.
Why it stands out: It is the first price increase Suzano has announced for Asia since April, after months of flat prices.
The real story: Analysts say the pulp price has found a floor near US$550 a tonne in China and could now reach US$590.
The catch: The increase is an announcement, not a closed deal; Asian buyers can still resist it in negotiations.
Who it hits: Chinese paper mills pay more, while Brazilian exporters earn more dollars for the same tonnes.
What comes next: September orders will show whether the new pulp price actually sticks in China.
Brazil’s Suzano has told clients in China and other Asian markets that it will charge US$20 more per tonne of pulp from September, the company’s first increase for the region since April, and analysts say the move confirms prices have bottomed out.
What Suzano announced and when it applies
The company is communicating the increase to customers in China and across Asia this week. A source in the sector confirmed the move to Reuters on Friday 28 August, and Suzano itself confirmed the new pricing for September.
The adjustment is US$20 per metric tonne. It applies to bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp, known in the industry as BEK, the short-fibre variety used in printing, tissue and packaging paper.
Suzano is the world’s largest producer of this fibre. When it moves its pulp price, smaller producers in Brazil, Chile and Uruguay usually follow within weeks.
The announcement matters beyond Asia. China is the reference market for global pulp pricing, so a Chinese increase often pulls other regions along later.
Why analysts say the price has found a floor
For UBS BB, the move reinforces the view that the market has found a floor near US$550 a tonne in China. That level has held through a long and painful downturn.
“If the adjustment is effectively implemented, it could raise the price range to US$580 to US$590 per tonne,” wrote Caio Greiner and his team in a note to clients.
BTG Pactual sees the same direction from a different angle. Its analysts point to recovering resale prices inside China as a sign that buyers are rebuilding stocks.
“We also observe some cost inflation among integrated Chinese producers, which should offer additional support to imported pulp prices,” wrote Leonardo Correa and his team.
BTG repeated that Suzano remains its preferred stock in the sector. It cited relatively light investor positioning and a valuation the bank still considers attractive.
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A long squeeze behind one small increase
Twenty dollars sounds modest because the market has been through a hard stretch. International pulp prices spent 13 months below US$600 a tonne, a level Suzano itself called unsustainable late last year.
The company estimated then that about 15 percent of global short-fibre capacity was operating below cash cost. Up to a quarter of European capacity had become economically unviable.
Supply discipline helped turn the corner in 2026. Indonesia revoked environmental licences from some pulp producers, and Asia Pulp & Paper delayed its OKI 2 project, keeping new volume off the market.
Suzano has been raising prices in steps all year. March brought US$20 more in Asia and US$50 in Europe and the Americas, and later rounds took the European quotation to US$1,430 a tonne by May.
Asia, however, had seen no increase since April. That makes Friday’s announcement the first test of Chinese demand in four months.
What it means for Brazil and for the paper you buy
Pulp is one of Brazil’s biggest export earners, and it is priced in dollars. Every successful increase flows almost directly into export revenue and trade-surplus figures.
For Suzano, firmer prices arrived together with stronger volumes in the second quarter of 2026. The company reported an adjusted operating profit before depreciation, the measure known as EBITDA, of R$4.7 billion (US$910 million) for the period.
For readers abroad, the connection is simple. Toilet paper, packaging and printing paper all start with this fibre, and China converts a large share of it.
A higher pulp price works through the chain slowly. Consumer prices for paper products react with a delay of months, not weeks.
The stock market’s first reaction was cautious. Suzano shares briefly rose almost 1.7 percent to R$47.18 (US$9.14) on Friday, then slipped back to R$46.33 (US$8.97) by late morning.
What to watch from here
The first test is implementation. Announced increases in the pulp trade are opening positions, and September orders will show how much of the US$20 survives negotiation.
The second test is followership. If Chilean and Uruguayan producers match the move, the floor thesis becomes much harder to dispute.
The third is China itself. Restocking cycles there tend to run for a few months, and BTG’s read on inventories will be confirmed or contradicted by autumn order books.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Suzano announce?
Suzano told customers in China and other Asian markets that it will raise its pulp price by US$20 per tonne from September 2026. It is the company’s first increase for Asia since April.
Who is Suzano?
Suzano is a Brazilian company and the world’s largest producer of eucalyptus pulp, the short fibre used to make printing paper, tissue and packaging. Its pulp price announcements usually set the tone for the global market.
Where is the pulp price heading, according to analysts?
UBS BB says the market has found a floor near US$550 a tonne in China. If the increase holds, its analysts expect a new range of US$580 to US$590 per tonne.
Why does a pulp price increase in Asia matter outside the sector?
Pulp is one of Brazil’s main dollar-earning exports, so higher prices feed directly into trade revenue. For consumers abroad, the fibre sits inside toilet paper, packaging and printing paper, though shelf prices react only after months.
Is the increase guaranteed to happen?
No. It is an announced list-price adjustment, and Asian buyers can resist it in contract negotiations. September order volumes will show how much of the US$20 is actually implemented.
Connected Coverage
We covered Suzano’s record quarter in Suzano’s record pulp and tissue chain, its first-quarter earnings in Suzano’s Q1 profit and record pulp sales and the company’s farming programme in Suzano’s family-farming drive in São Paulo. More on the country’s companies sits on our Brazil business hub.
Sources: Reuters via Terra (28 August 2026), Valor Econômico (28 August and 19 February 2026), Forbes Brasil (29 August 2026), Portal Celulose (22 September 2025 and 8 November 2025), Brasil 247 (24 April 2026). Exchange rate: R$5.1639 per US dollar, open.er-api.com, 29 August 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
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