February was another disappointing month for PET recyclers in Germany. Some market players are now beginning to describe this as the biggest crisis the industry has ever seen. Cheap primary PET from European producers and even cheaper imports of virgin material from Asia are weighing into sales of regranulate and flakes. Suppliers of PET recyclates had to lower prices again in February.
However, the lower prices had not lent any significant momentum to demand. Sales for film and fibre applications were poor and the strapping segment was buying almost no recycled material anymore, market insiders said. The largest number of sales were still being made to bottle manufacturers, but even here, not enough material could be sold. If the situation does not improve by the end of March or the beginning of April at the very latest, recyclers will disappear from the market, industry experts worry....
