India’s non-ferrous scrap businesses benefit from growth

The continuing growth of the Indian economy is supporting the non-ferrous sector with higher prices for copper and aluminium scrap, according to the Bureau of International Recycling.

The global recycling organisation’s latest non-ferrous ‘Mirror’ reports that India is set to be the most resilient economy among the world’s top 10 by 2027. The PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which says it is the voice of India’s trade and industry, expects the national economy to be the fourth largest by 2026 with 6.8% growth this year and 7.7% in 2026.

Writing in the Mirror, Anirudha Agrawal, board member of BIR’s non-ferrous metals division, quotes Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal as saying that foreign direct investment into India is rising sharply, with investors from the Middle East, Japan, the EU and the USA seeing it as a top destination.

‘Strong’ copper

Agrawal adds that aluminium scrap availability is improving but prices are still high. As an indication, Zorba prices were at US$ 1 975 per tonne and ADC12 was at US$ 2 340, in mid-January.

‘Domestic demand for copper is strong. At the time of writing, Comex is US$ 400 higher than the LME in anticipation of US tariffs being introduced by the new Trump Administration; as a result, copper scrap is moving towards the US market. The export ban on electrical waste from the EU has reduced scrap availability for Indian consumers.’

Fellow board member Shen Dong reports that China’s GDP enjoyed a better fourth quarter growth of 5.4%, pushing the annual average to the targeted 5%. However, proposed tariffs from President Trump are discouraging Chinese scrap consumers from purchasing directly from US suppliers. This is creating more pressure on the raw material supply side for China’s copper smelters, he said.

Black mass approval

Meanwhile, the import into China of black mass, a by-product of lithium-ion battery recycling, has been legalised by a new national standard – GB/T 45203-2024. It was issued on 31 December with an effective date of 1 July.

According to December data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, vehicle sales recorded a third straight monthly increase to 3.489 million units, equating to year-on-year growth of 10.5%. A total of 31.436 million units were sold in 2024 for an increase of 4.5% over 2023.

BIR’s regional recycling expert for China, Ma Hongchang, reports that the country’s recycled non-ferrous metals industry has fully implemented the expectations of China’s 14th Five Year Plan (2021-25), delivering more industrial enterprises, a larger industrial scale and an improved image. ‘With its irreplaceable value in resource recycling and significant advantages in energy conservation and carbon reduction, it has become an important component of China’s raw material security and sustainable development, constantly presenting itself as a “sunrise industry”,’ he reports.

China’s production of recycled metals is showing continuous growth:  from 2021 to 2024, recycled copper totalled, respectively, 3.65 million tonnes (Mt), 3.75 Mt, 4.1 Mt and 4.3 Mt. Across the same years, production of recycled aluminium was 8 Mt, 8.65 Mt, 9.5 Mt and 10.55 Mt. From 2021 to 2023, China’s imports of recycled metal raw materials amounted to 2.72 Mt, 3.29 Mt and 3.74 Mt. Import volumes are thought to have exceeded 4 Mt in 2024.

Tokyo blues
The Mirror includes a particular issue faced by scrap yards in Japan’s capital Tokyo. Board member Yoko Yoshida reports that operators in the Tokyo metropolitan area are now prohibited from creating scrap piles outside the yards, are required to build high walls, and must communicate their actions to local residents, with local government picking up none of the associated costs.

‘These new regulations are heaping pressure on smaller companies lacking the finances to make such investments, mostly long-established, family-owned businesses,’ Yoshida says. ‘Some companies have already moved their yards outside the Tokyo area but there is concern these regulations will ultimately be extended nationwide.’

Non-Ferrous Division president Paul Coyte kicks off the Mirror by reflecting that the non-ferrous metals sector faces both challenges and opportunities as it evolves.
‘The coming year will present some clear and defining challenges, for which BIR will be conducting its expert advocacy work on behalf of members.
‘Of particular note will be the major study produced for BIR by KPMG on the environmental benefits of recycling which will quantify the positive impact of secondary production when compared to the primary route.’