U.S. exported 9 million tons of waste paper in half year

Compared with the same period last year, the USA's waste paper exports in the first six months of 2021 have increased significantly, of which a large amount went to India and Thailand, while waste plastic exports have remained stable year-on-year.

 

U.S. waste paper exports jumped from 7.4 million tons in the first half of 2020 to 9 million tons this year. The figure for 2021 is still lower than the figure before 2020. In the first half of this year, the largest exporter of US waste paper was India, which imported a total of 2.4 million waste paper, accounting for more than a quarter of the total US waste paper exports during the same period. Compared with the 970,000 tons in the same period in 2020, the import volume in the first half of this year has obviously increased significantly.

Other major importing countries in the first half of this year include Mexico (1.1 million tons), Thailand (1.04 million tons), Vietnam (1.02 million tons), Taiwan (490,000 tons), Canada (483,000 tons), South Korea (403,000 tons) , Malaysia (390,000 tons) and Indonesia (326,000 tons). As far as Thailand is concerned, its imports of waste paper from the United States in the first half of 2021 have increased by 260% from the 288,000 tons imported in the same period in 2020. The growth of these countries is easing the impact of China's waste paper import ban, which has left a huge gap in the global waste paper export market.

Compared with exports in the first half of 2017, total U.S. waste paper exports in 2021 fell by 12%. In 2017, China's imports of waste paper accounted for 66% of all US waste paper exports, while in the same period this year, China's imports of waste paper accounted for 3% of US waste paper exports.

Exports of waste paper and pulp from the United States are also continuing. This is a relatively new business model in which waste paper is recycled and pulped in the United States, and then shipped elsewhere for final product manufacturing. In the first half of 2021, US exporters exported 205,000 tons of pulp made from waste paper, which was the same as the 203,000 tons exported in the same period last year. The export market is mainly concentrated in China, which accounts for 83% of the total US waste paper and pulp exports, and Canada accounts for 12%.

In addition, in the first half of this year, U.S. companies exported slightly more scrap plastic than the same period in 2020. From January to June, exporters exported 643.8 million pounds of waste plastic, slightly higher than the 641.6 million pounds exported a year ago. Canada is the largest importer of plastics. The country imported 190.1 million pounds of waste plastic, accounting for nearly 30% of all material exports from the United States, which also created the highest level of plastic imports in the first half of the year since 2016.

In view of the regulatory changes in the Basel Convention, an agreement was reached between the Canadian and U.S. governments to maintain the ability to export scrap plastics to Canada, thereby increasing exports to Canada. Broadly speaking, the changes in the Basel Convention have strengthened the supervision of the transportation of waste plastics and officially closed the door for the United States to send materials to certain countries. The United States is not a party to the convention and therefore prohibits parties from trading certain plastics with the United States. However, export data show that the United States continues to send materials to Basel Party countries.

For example, Malaysia imported 118.5 million pounds of waste plastic in the first half of this year. The country is a party to the Basel Convention and has paid more attention to plastic waste imports in recent years. Certain types of waste plastics exported from the United States to Malaysia are currently considered to be banned-for example, mixed plastics may fall under the ban. But a high-profile export case earlier this year clearly illustrates how the rules are interpreted and what materials are allowed in.

After anti-export groups marked the plastic cargo that was shipped from the United States to Malaysia in February, Malaysian inspectors intercepted the container and inspected it when it arrived in the country. They report that the container contains waste polyethylene, which meets the country's clean, separated waste import standards. This puts the cargo outside the name of the Basel Convention that prohibits its entry into the country.

Export data from January to June showed that 67% of plastics shipped to Malaysia were designated as polyethylene. The "other" plastic category, which usually includes mixed plastic bags, plastic recycled from electronics, and other mixed material streams, accounts for 14%. Most plastics shipped to Canada are identified as "other" plastics.

In the first half of 2021, the other major importers of U.S. waste plastics are Mexico (80.4 million pounds), Vietnam (50 million pounds), India (39.4 million pounds), Indonesia (28.8 million pounds), Turkey (16.9 million pounds), and Hong Kong. (15.3 million pounds), Taiwan (15 million).