China’s imports of some categories of non-ferrous metals, including copper, have gone down because of import quotas. | Andrew b Stowe/Shutterstock
Reports from the Bureau of International Recycling shine a light on non-ferrous scrap metal markets as we enter the new year, particularly in China.
China no longer wants to receive garbage from other countries. As a result, enhanced import inspections by Chinese customs officials have led to severe recycling market confusion worldwide, especially for shippers of recovered paper and plastics.
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.