Glass
Glass prices have mostly been stable this month, with the exception of MRF glass for remelt which saw an increase of £5 on the top end. This is likely due to the high costs associated with the production of glass using virgin material driving up the demand for recycled material.
Demand has increased overall, but this has not had a significant effect on prices. Some in the sector warned that the level of demand may not continue as reprocessors may be front-loading in order to avoid paying higher energy prices in the coming months.
View our more detailed glass price index here.
Metals
The metals market has continued to see increased prices in May, across the majority of grades. The LME remains high, contributing to the increased prices, despite reports that underlying trading conditions have not changed significantly in recent weeks.
Availability of material remains tight in a number of areas, holding prices up, even as energy and fuel costs continue to remain high.
There are also reports of merchants experiencing cash flow pressures, with high replacement costs and challenging market conditions placing additional strain on trading activity.
View our more detailed metal price index here.
Organics
The organics market has remained stable in May.
View our more detailed organics price index here.
Plastics
There has been a further increase in demand for most plastic grades this month, especially higher grade PET, HDPE bottles and higher quality film grades, helping to further push up prices.
Strong demand continues to be driven by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East which has driven up the price of oil and in turn the price of virgin polymer.
Demand for PET has also increased this month due to seasonal demand.
The plastics PRN, which has hovered around £300-330 this month, continues to provide further price support. Many in the sector anticipate that prices will continue to strengthen, however, reprocessors are finding it challenging to pass the price increases of raw material onto end users, such as retailers, amid the cost-of-living crisis.
View our more detailed plastics price index here.
Textiles
Most textiles prices have remained stable this month, with the exception of HWRC textile bank collections which have seen a small increase from a gate fee of £110 to a gate fee of £100.
There has also been a minor decrease in the top end of loads delivered to sorting plants from £240 to £230, likely due to the rising cost of haulage.
Some in the sector have warned that charity shop collections are likely to face price deductions in the coming months, in keeping with the trend of HWRC collection deductions. Charity shops have been warned of the incoming changes.
View our more detailed textiles price index here.
Wood
The wood market has continued to face challenging conditions this period, although gate fees have decreased as the market transitions out of the winter period.
There has been a reduced outlet for waste wood due to high volume of material in circulation and offline plants. As a result, many operators are having to manage excess material with fewer disposal or processing options available.
However, strong demand over the winter period has helped to absorb a portion of the surplus material. This has led to a softening in gate fees.
View our more detailed wood price index here.
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