As the Christmas wrapping paper goes into the recycling bin, companies such as Smurfit Westrock (US:SW) and its peers will be hoping efforts to cut production in 2025 can help push prices up.
Pandemic-era online shopping sparked a boom in demand for cardboard packaging, but by 2023 box sales volumes had started to drop, leaving companies with too much stock to shift. The market had taken a cyclical turn, and a wave of consolidation followed.