European Recycling Markets Reel from Coronavirus

Concerns over the long-term impact of the coronavirus outbreak on key European recycling markets sharply escalated this week following the adoption of further containment measures across the continent.
 
Sources are particularly worried about limited volumes entering collection systems, logistic disruptions, potential downstream demand losses in non-packaging sectors, buyers abandoning sustainability measures and a reduction in necessary long-term investment.
 
Even at the end of last week, concerns in the recycling industry had only been limited to the impact on virgin prices—with which recycled material competes—and individual customer relationships in countries such as Italy.
 
The coronavirus has had a major impact on petrochemicals, hindering global supply chains, changing consumer demand patterns and prompting wide swings in the markets. At the same time, crude has plunged in the wake of the ongoing price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia—which is also being felt in virgin plastics markets across Europe.
 
In the meantime, the recycling markets have largely been trading normally, albeit wi