Shipping and haulage seemed to be a key concern for the recycling industry this week with prices rising for both.
The after-effects of the Ever Given vessel getting stuck in the Suez Canal continues with shipping lines introducing higher surcharges. Those shipping to deep-sea destinations are finding additional surcharges being imposed for April that are expected to last into May.
Hauliers are reported by some to be acting like shipping lines with some throwing their weight around, not seeming bothered by missed collections and demanding quay rent when they can’t get to mills on time.
Obviously, this isn’t impressing traders and is making trade into Europe more difficult.
In the markets, some paper grades eased, while the PRN falling had an impact on the plastic market. Certain metal grades saw big price rises again this week.
The pound was again unchanged against the dollar at $1.37 and there was no change with the euro at €1.15.
Recycled plastic
The PRN/PERN price continued to soften dropping by almost £15 per tonne.
Bottle grades have some residual demand, especially from Europe, and this helped to soften the blow with these only falling by £10 per tonne.
It was a different story for LDPE film with underlying UK and European demand improving that meant there was no change in price for film grades this week.
For packaging grades, there is generally a shortage of material across Europe and this is expected to provide some support to the market in the coming weeks.
Much will depend on where PRN prices head though.
| 1-week | 4-week | |
| PET | 201-207 | 205-211 |
| HDPE | 401-407 | 402-408 |
| LDPE | 361-367 | 362-368 |
Recycled paper
The market for most recovered fibre grades appears to be softening as mills decide they can’t keep paying current prices.
While Europe seemed happy to pay top dollar, well top euro, for material, elsewhere was backing off. India in particular was less interested in paying the high prices for OCC and mixed, while Chinese mill groups serving South East Asia were reluctant to match European buyers.
With greater volumes heading to deep sea destinations, this had the effect of dropping prices a notch. OCC lost £2 while mixed came down to around £110. With mixed, orders were happening at below £95 but also above £120 depending on the destination and quality.
News & pams gained though due to good European demand to reach £125 per tonne.
But with shipping and haulage getting more expensive, and demand from some destinations falling, the market is expecting a softening over the next few weeks.
Forecast prices
| 1-week | 4-week | |
| OCC | 132-136 | 132-136 |
| ONP | 121-125 | 121-125 |
| Mixed | 104-108 | 105-109 |
Recycled metals
Continued growth on the LME boosted scrap copper up by £150 per tonne this week, while brass increased by £75 per tonne. All other grades remained the same.
Recycling prices
For recycled paper prices, click here
For recycled plastic prices, click here
For recycled metal prices, click here
For recycled glass prices, click here
For PRN/PERN prices, click here
