Attached is your PO for deliveries of recyclables during September2023.

After many months of constant decline, the value of recyclables isfinally up this month.  All paper grades are up, and most plastic grades improved slightly.

In the Pacific Northwest (PNW), domestic paper mill demand is back.Despite closing their Tacoma Mill, effective September 30, 2023, WestRock is still consuming heavy OCC amounts this month.  Several other PNW mills also increased consumption.  In the face of economic turmoil in China’s economy, other Southeast Asian countries have picked up consumption for both OCC and mixed paper.  These rising domestic and export demands boosted all paper prices, significantly impacting the overall recyclables value.

Looking forward, we expect the closing of WestRock’s Tacoma mill to create softness in the paper market.  However, there are other market indicators which may continue to improve the overall OCC value for the remainder of this year.  Bio Poppel this week announced a $500 million investment program for the coming two years that includes the construction of five new corrugated plants, two in the U.S. and three in Mexico. Even with the aforementioned economic turmoil in China, a Chinese paper company just started up a new 250,000 tonper year recycled containerboard mill.  These announcements indicate both domestic and export market demand may continue to apply upward pressure to pricing.

After three straight months of plummeting plastics pricing, the market appears to have hit bottom and rebounded slightly this month.  We are hopeful that this upward trend continues.  HDPE natural and HDPE color rebounded slightly after devasting price drops in previous months.  Several months ago, we mentioned that selling PET has been difficult—many MRFs were unable to find buying customers and were forced to stockpile inventory.  This month, PET movement improved, indicating that market demand may stabilize.  PET pricing remains low, but at least customers are buying again.

Overall recyclables pricing would have been even better had it not been for a soft aluminum market.  UBC prices are slightly lower this month.  Consumption of aluminum cans remains suppressed as does construction demand for aluminum.  The lower UBC prices were offset a bit by a small increase in tin demand and prices.

In these trying economic times, wecontinue to stay on top of trends to deliver you the highest possible price and to provide you with the best service.  It is our pleasure to work with you to recycle material and to fulfill Pioneer’s purpose, “Helping People Succeed in a Better Environment.”  We appreciate you and thank you for your business.

Stay Safe!

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