SE Asian players receive more offers for scrap plastics amid China ban

Players in Southeast Asia report that they have been receiving an increasing number of offers for recyclable plastics in the recent months since the world’s major scrap plastics exporters have been in search of new destinations to allocate their quotas since China announced its decision to put a ban on the imports of plastic waste.

According to media reports, China, the biggest importer of scrap plastics, will start to implement the ban as of January 1, 2018 despite players’ growing concerns regarding the global recycling industry, which is likely to be hit by the absence of China.

Data from International Trade Centre indicate that China imported 7.3 million tons of waste plastics in 2016 from countries including Japan, the US and the EU.

A converter operating in Vietnam’s PET market noted, “More import offers for recycled materials have emerged in Southeast Asia since China announced the ban decision in July. We also hear that a good amount of material have already been sold to Vietnam. This is good for us as we now have more alternatives when making purchases while offers are more competitive.”

A source from a Thai polymer producer commented, “We hear that several recycler companies are planning to exit from the Chinese market soon and move their operations to other destinations. However, even if other countries start to import more recyclable polymers, their total volume will not be as much as China’s overall import volume. Hence, we think that major scrap plastics exporters should find ways to eliminate their waste.”