--- title: What cardboard can tell us about the economy - The Hustle description: We can learn more from boxes than you might expect. image: https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1124914710-HS-News-Brief_2023-02-03T015832.977Z.webp --- # What cardboard can tell us about the economy ![Jacob Cohen](https://thehustle.co/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/IMG_5670-1-modified-768x768.png?width=48&height=48&name=IMG_5670-1-modified-768x768.png) [Jacob Cohen](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/author/jacob-cohen) [Jacob Cohen Twitter profile ](https://twitter.com/ImJacobCohen) Published: February 03, 2023 Updated: October 11, 2023 Turns out that cardboard box you just body-slammed into a recycling bin also happens to be an interesting gauge of economic conditions. ![What cardboard can tell us about the economy](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hs-fs/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1124914710-HS-News-Brief_2023-02-03T015832.977Z.webp?width=595&height=400&name=1124914710-HS-News-Brief_2023-02-03T015832.977Z.webp) During the pandemic, a pivot in consumer demand from services to goods helped push box prices some 55%. Industry leaders adjusted production capacity to meet demand. Now, though, like boxes, the economy is lying flat, and less material appears to be needed. According to [reporting](https://www.freightwaves.com/news/cardboard-box-demand-plunging-at-rates-unseen-since-the-great-recession) from *FreightWaves*: - In Q4, US box shipments dropped 8.4%, the worst dip since the Great Recession, and ~20% of US box production capacity was untouched, the most since Q1 2009. - At 4.3 weeks, supply of the packaging material containerboard was unusually high last quarter, and boxboard saw its lowest operating capacity on record, per the American Forest & Paper Association. #### **What’s happened?** In a recent call to investors, the Packaging Corporation of America said inflation, rising interest rates, a shift from goods back to services, and a cooler housing market have all dampened box demand. Good news is, despite the slump, the Packaging Corporation of America expects shipments for Q1 2023 to be 6% higher than the same period in 2019. 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