A new initiative by the Environment Agency (EA) to publish a monthly breakdown of packaging and recycling figures provides a clearer picture that export of plastic is returning to previous levels.

The data for each of the months from April to June 2013 follows publication of data for the whole of quarter 2 (Q2) in July, which showed that recovery rates for glass and plastic packaging were noticeably higher than quarter 1 (Q1). The publication of monthly data (12 August) illustrates how the market has been responding to the Chinese government’s Operation Green Fence. Notably 38,096 tonnes of plastic were exported in June compared to 26,408 tonnes in April and a year low of 21,056 in March.

The figures also show much more monthly variation in the amount of glass sent for reprocessing than in Q1. A total of 261,960 tonnes was sent for remelt, compared with 234,725 the previous quarter. On the face of it, the monthly figures show greater variation in Q2, but according to Ian Andrews, senior market trader at The Environment Exchange, this variation may be down to lags in reporting. Andrews added that “a major operator had shut their yard for refurbishment and this was likely to have had an impact on the June figures, reducing material handled by 7,000-8,000 tonnes”. In addition, 148,109 tonnes of glass was reprocessed for aggregate and other uses in Q2, a 44.6 per cent increase on the previous quarter reflecting higher PRN prices.

Andrews commented: “The added detail of these monthly figures allow[s] the market to confirm what it already knew in terms of sentiment. There have been questions about the price of [packaging recovery notes] for glass, and this information can help us reached a more balanced picture.”

However, it is the month-on-month rise in plastic exports that is likely to attract the most interest. The figures show how steps taken by Chinese authorities had an impact on the early part of the year. Although despite this situation, Q2 supply figures for plastic PRNs were “pretty close to where they need to be”, Andrews noted.

He added: “The June total shows us how new markets are being sourced, encouraged by the value of PRNs rising to the mid to high 60s [in pounds]. So places like India and Indonesia have become bigger markets.”