Mixed start to 2017 for UK recovered paper exports

United Kingdom – The UK – Europe’s largest recovered paper exporter – is well behind schedule if it is going to beat its overseas shipment record set in 2016. However, exports improved markedly after a slow start to the year, according to latest figures from the Confederation of Paper Industries and HM Revenue & Customs.

Volumes dispatched from the UK in April were 8.7% higher than in the same month of 2016 at 398 411 tonnes but the year-to-date total of 1.624 million tonnes was 8.2% short of the 1.769 million tonnes delivered to customers abroad in the opening four months of last year.

Exports had also shown a year-on-year increase in March (of approaching 5%) following a 30% slump in February. Across the whole of 2016, the UK exported an all-time high 4.932 million tonnes of recovered paper.

Usage by the UK’s own mills was 3.8% higher in April at 254 570 tonnes whereas the January-April total of 1.036 million tonnes was 0.3% lower than the 1.039 million tonnes consumed in last year’s corresponding period.

Year on year, UK collections climbed almost 7% in April but were 5.5% lower for the first four months of 2017 as a whole at 2.63 million tonnes.