Media refer to scrap metal, waste paper, and waste plastics as potentially generating massive wealth— is this true? Why is 'trash' turning into a golden business opportunity?

Third—and most importantly—the import ban on waste paper has reshaped supply-demand dynamics. After China fully banned the import of solid waste in 2021, its dependence on imported waste paper plummeted from a peak of 40% to zero overnight. Over 60% of the wood pulp used in papermaking relies on imports, while waste paper must now be sourced entirely domestically. This year, an unusually long plum rain season and frequent typhoons severely hampered collection at baling stations—causing paper prices to surge sharply. As one industry insider put it: 'As soon as it rains, everyone knows paper prices are about to rise.' So yes, the claim of '104% profit growth' is real—but it stems primarily from the confluence of cyclical, policy-driven, and geopolitical factors—not because the industry has suddenly become a money-printing machine. II. Why Has 'Trash' Become Valuable? A Global Supply Chain Repricing If surging profits represent the 'outcome,' then the rising value of scrap represents the 'cause'—and behind that cause lies an ongoing global supply chain repricing. In the past, waste recycling was a classic 'bargain-hunting' business: when virgin materials were cheap, no one wanted recycled feedstock, and waste often ended up in landfills. But as geopolitical conflicts have made raw material supplies increasingly uncertain, recycled resources have shifted from being mere 'supplements' to essential 'substitutes.' This isn’t just price volatility—it’s a fundamental shift in supply chain logic. Let’s examine the pricing drivers for specific categories: Waste Paper: Over 60% of wood pulp for papermaking is imported. Following the 2021 solid-waste import ban, domestic recycling became the sole source of waste paper. Meanwhile, domestic demand continues expanding rapidly due to explosive growth in e-commerce packaging and express delivery cartons—creating a severe supply-demand gap that pushed corrugated cardboard (kraft linerboard) prices from ¥1,100/ton to ¥2,000/ton. Waste Copper: According to Mysteel data, waste copper prices this year have consistently exceeded those of the past three years—rising from ~¥89,800/ton in early July to ~¥93,800/ton by mid-September, a gain of roughly 4.5%. Copper is the 'hard currency' of the electrification era—essential for new-energy vehicles, photovoltaics, and power grids. Crucially, carbon emissions from recycled copper are only 32% of those from primary copper. Against the backdrop of the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) set to expand, recycled copper’s 'green premium' is becoming increasingly tangible. Waste Plastics: Virgin PET prices climbed from ~¥6,300/ton at the start of the year to around ¥9,000/ton—a cumulative increase exceeding 40%—and remain elevated above ¥8,600/ton. As virgin material grows more expensive, the cost-effectiveness of recycled plastics improves markedly. Spent Batteries: In 2025, spent battery recycling volumes surged 36.8% year-on-year—the fastest growth among all categories. Retired batteries contain scarce metals like lithium, nickel, and cobalt; extracting them via recycling costs significantly less than mining virgin ores—making these batteries a 'mobile mine.' When we connect these threads, one keyword emerges: resource security. China generates colossal volumes of waste annually. Efficiently recovering and reusing these materials is equivalent to opening an inexhaustible mine within China’s borders. Against the backdrop of U.S.-China strategic competition, geopolitical conflict, and supply-chain decoupling, 'urban mining' has evolved beyond an environmental slogan into a national-security-level strategic imperative. Thus, 'trash turning into gold' is not mere rhetoric—it is an unfolding industrial reality. Yet this reality bears little resemblance to the common-sense assumption that 'waste prices rose, so scrap collectors all got rich.'

PET bottle costs have surged 40%! How much longer can low-priced bottled water hold out? The answer lies inside plastic processing workshops.

During the 2026 beverage sales peak season, packaged drinking water did not launch its usual 'price war'; instead, reports of price hikes emerged. According to media reports, both Wahaha and China Resources Beverage recently issued price-adjustment notices to distributors across multiple regions: effective July 1, the wholesale price per case of Wahaha Purified Water (596 mL × 24 bottles) will rise by ¥0.5–¥1, while the wholesale price per 18.9-liter drum of CRB Yibao drinking water will increase by ¥1. Source: Xiaoshidai (a food industry media outlet) This is no isolated incident. Earlier, numerous small- and medium-sized drinking-water brands had already successively raised their ex-factory prices. In response to rumors of price increases, Wahaha’s official Weibo account confirmed the adjustment on the afternoon of June 27, citing fluctuations in packaging material costs. It stated that wholesale channel prices for various water product formats would be adjusted—but emphasized that retail prices for its entire range of purified water products would remain unchanged. That said, low-priced water at the retail level is not impervious to pressure. Changshu-based retailer Pang Donglai—renowned for high value-for-money—launched its newly packaged DL Natural Mineral Water in May. Due to rising raw material costs driven by global market prices, the price per 360-mL bottle increased by ¥0.1 to ¥1.3, and the price per 15-bottle case rose by ¥1.5. The shift from 'price war' to 'price hike' took merely two years. In April 2024, Nongfu Spring re-entered the purified water segment, establishing '¥1-per-bottle water' as the norm. Today, however, ¥1 water is rapidly vanishing from shelves. Although Nongfu Spring’s green-labeled purified water still occupies the prime shelf position (C-position) at ¥9.9 per 12-bottle case, and its red-labeled mineral water sells at ¥12.9 per 12-bottle case, brands such as Jing Tian and Wahaha have also lowered their price points into the ¥11 range. Yet mounting cost pressures can no longer be ignored by manufacturers. Faced with upstream price hikes, how long can low-priced water hold out at the retail level? Packaging Costs for Bottled Water Have Risen 40% Cumulatively The answer may lie not at the sales end—but at the production end. Packaging costs for bottled water constitute the core variable in this contest. In 2026, domestic spot prices for water-grade polyester bottle chips (PET) surged over 40% year-to-date—directly pushing overall beverage bottle production costs up nearly 30%. PET prices once served as the 'backbone' of price wars. From 2024 through the first half of 2025, PET prices trended steadily downward—providing bottled-water companies with ample cost headroom to wage aggressive price competition. When PET prices spiked sharply in 2026, the 'water war' transformed from 'Can we fight?' to 'Can we afford to fight?' As the 'ammunition' for price wars grows costly, brand owners’ only recourse is to seek margin upstream: using lighter bottles, faster production lines, and smarter systems—to drive packaging costs down to the absolute minimum. This is precisely where opportunities lie for the plastic processing industry. Four Key Tools to Stabilize Bottled-Water Packaging Costs 1. Lightweighting: From 'Weight Reduction' to 'Extreme Lightweighting' Lightweighting is the most direct path to lowering bottled-water packaging costs. In 2025, Husky and KHS jointly developed the 'Factor 101' PET bottle—the world’s lightest static-water PET bottle. With a 591-mL capacity, it weighs only 5.89 grams—about 30% lighter than standard bottles—while maintaining a top-load strength of 220 Newtons (the industry standard is 200 N) and enabling high-speed line speeds of up to 90,000 bottles per hour. From project launch to finished product rollout, the development cycle took just four months.

Europe rPET November Outlook Uncertain as PET Prices Rise

Oct 23, 2026

Senior Editor Matt Tudball analyzes the uncertain November outlook for the European recycled PET market amidst rising PET prices. The discussion covers key market developments impacting supply and demand dynamics.

icis

2026-05-01

Europe rPET Flake, Pellet Still Under Upward Pressure in May

2026-06-26

Europe rPET Flake Prices Rise in Iberia, Soften in NWE and Eastern Europe

2026-07-24

Video: Europe rPET Keeps Watch on Virgin Developments as Conflict Escalates

2026-08-21

Europe rPET Market Activity Stable Amid Summer Holidays

2026-08-28

Europe rPET Capacity May Struggle to Absorb Rising Bale Supply