Lingering impacts from the shipping disruptions of January and February still plague the movement of recyclables out of the U.S. | DifferR/Shutterstock
Overseas markets for recovered paper and plastic are experiencing disruption as governments enact widespread restrictions and close ports in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
IT asset disposition company EPC reported a sharp increase in demand for notebook, tablet and desktop PCs throughout the U.S. and Canada as the need to work from home grows. | Sally B/Shutterstock
Electronics recycling and reuse companies across the U.S. say the coronavirus and resulting work-from-home orders have energized the market for refurbished electronics. In some cases, they can’t keep up with the needs of customers.
In communities around the country, recycling programs are limiting the materials they collect, altering service hours or shutting down altogether. | Oksana Shturo/Shutterstock
Recycling programs nationwide have curtailed service due to the coronavirus pandemic, potentially hampering the supply of recyclables moving to market in the weeks to come.
Even as the vast majority of municipalities have not made changes to recycling service, the coronavirus impact has been felt in programs around the country. | VO IMAGES/Shutterstock
The global escalation of COVID-19 is hampering some North American recycling programs, impacting Chinese users of U.S. recovered fiber, constraining global shipping, denting stock prices and threatening an economic recession.
With newly announced process, Chinese importers can apply for tariff exemptions beginning this week. | Sumrit Tesrumphun/Shutterstock
The Chinese government will consider exempting tariffs on OCC and other recovered fiber on a company-by-company basis. Meanwhile, a tariff on U.S. recycled paper pulp shipments into China has been lifted for one year.
Notable changes have taken place in markets for curbside recyclables over the past month, including an increase in OCC prices and a steep dive in natural HDPE prices.
During recent earnings calls, a number of fiber company executives touched on pricing trends they are seeing around OCC and other grades.
One major U.S. mill operator is actively shipping recycled paper pulp to China, and another is installing equipment to bring in lower grades of paper feedstock. Those were a few takeaways from recent earnings calls from publicly traded paper firms.
For MRFs in the Northeastern U.S., the average value of a ton of recyclables was $42.41 during the fourth quarter of 2019.
Curbside recyclables pricing in the Northeastern U.S. was fairly flat late last year, but processing costs for recycling facilities increased noticeably, according to a Northeast Recycling Council survey.
This year’s Resource Recycling Conference is providing much-needed insight on a range of critical recycling issues. And on the event’s first day, the National Recycling Coalition named its new executive director.
Recycling facilities are encountering both good and bad news on the fiber-market front: OCC prices have increased substantially, but mixed paper slipped further into the negatives.