According to the latest trade data released by the U.S. Census Bureau, the export volume of waste paper in the United States in 2024 fell by 11% year on year, while the export volume of waste plastic also decreased by about 2%. At the same time, it is worth noting that the import of recycled plastics has hit a record high. In terms of waste paper, Canada is an important source of supply to the United States.
India remains the largest market for US waste paper
For the full year, the United States exported 13.3 million short tons of waste paper, down from 14.8 million short tons in 2023. Among them, India imported 2.3 million short tons, accounting for 17% of the total US waste paper exports, ranking firmly as the largest importer of US waste paper. Mexico is the second largest importer to the United States, importing 2 million short tons. It was followed by Thailand, which also imported 2 million short tons.
In terms of the type of waste paper exported, old corrugated boxes (OCC) accounted for the largest proportion, reaching 68%. Mixed waste paper accounted for 15%, advanced deinked paper accounted for 10%, and newsprint accounted for 3%. The remaining 4% is made up of bleached pulp board waste and mechanical pulp paper.
Plastic exports are shifting to North American neighbors and Southeast Asia
In 2024, the United States exported 903 million pounds of recycled plastic, down slightly from 921 million pounds the year before. Canada and Mexico were the top plastic export destinations for the U.S., importing 308 million pounds and 190 million pounds, respectively. Other major export markets include India (83 million pounds), Malaysia (78 million pounds), Vietnam (53 million pounds), Indonesia (41 million pounds), and Spain (25 million pounds).
In terms of resin types, polyethylene (PE) accounted for 32% of total exports, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) accounted for 20%, polystyrene (PS) accounted for 6%, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) accounted for 4%. The remaining 38 percent is classified as "other plastics."
Plastic imports are at a record high
The recycling industry in the United States has long relied on export markets to process recyclable packaging materials. However, the latest trade data shows that recyclable materials processors and end users in the United States are increasingly sourcing raw materials from abroad. Taking plastics as an example, the total amount of waste plastic imports in the United States in 2024 reached a staggering 1.085 billion pounds, which not only broke the record of 1.030 billion pounds set in 2021, but also marked a new high in the United States waste plastic imports.
In recent years, the import of waste plastics in the United States has continued and steadily increased. At the same time, as exports of waste plastics continue to decline (mainly due to changes in import regulations in foreign markets), the United States has now turned into a net importer of waste plastics.
While federal trade data does not specify the specific form of imported plastic, traders say imported plastic materials are often in the form of sheets rather than raw packaging. The main sources of plastic imports are Canada and Mexico, which together accounted for 51 percent of all plastic imports to the United States last year.
From the plastic resin type, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) accounted for the largest proportion of imports, reaching 51%. This was followed by "other" plastics and polyethylene (PE), which were the second most imported resin categories. By contrast, paper imports are still much smaller than exports.
For all of 2024, the United States imported just 1.1 million short tons of paper, and the vast majority of that - 94 percent - came from Canada. It can be said that Canada is the main supplier of imported waste paper to the United States.
