A months-long string of rising prices for recovered materials has continued into February.
A months-long string of rising prices for recovered materials has continued into February.
A rebound in commodity values meant substantial recycling-related revenue boosts for North America’s two largest residential haulers.
This story originally appeared in the October 2016 issue of Resource Recycling.
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A story about rising commodity prices drew our readers’ attention last month. And so did Waste Management’s take on the ups and downs of recycling markets.
Prices for recovered OCC and fiber bales are still in the dumps, but the value of natural HDPE bales has remained at record highs.
India has substantially increased its imports since China banned mixed paper from entering the country. | SNEHIT PHOTO/Shutterstock
India, the largest overseas market for U.S. mixed paper, has tightened quality standards and reduced its recycled fiber import volume.
Verso announced its Duluth, Minn. mill will be producing 90,000 tons of recycled products per year. | DenisNata/Shutterstock
A Minnesota recycled paper mill conversion project has expanded beyond its original planned capacity and may grow further, company officials recently announced. Production is slated to begin this month.
An expansion at JW Aluminum’s Goose Creek, S.C. site will result in a significant uptick in the company’s scrap consumption. | Courtesy of JW Aluminum Company.
JW Aluminum Company says it will be increasing its annual intake of UBCs and other forms of recycled material by at least 100 million pounds when it finishes an expansion project in the Southeast U.S. next year.
U.S. recovered fiber exports to China will continue to face a 25% tariff, as they have since September 2018. | Surapol Usanakul/Shutterstock
The Chinese government will not implement a planned tariff increase on OCC and other recovered fiber imported from the U.S., nor scrap aluminum, after the two countries came to an agreement in recent trade talks. But existing tariffs will remain.
Prices for curbside natural high-density polyethylene have climbed even higher over the past month. Paper prices remain painfully low.