BIR: International Recycling Industry Largely Resilient to Coronavirus Impacts

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The Bureau of International Recycling (BIR) announced that international scrap trading operations have managed to be largely unaffected by the spread of the coronavirus. This is based on inputs from the organization’s various commodity divisions and committees. However, it noted that the situation continues to remain fluid and that it is under constant review.

According to BIR, nonferrous metals business with Asian markets reported notable slowdown in the month of February this year, although there has been no major disruption to material movement. Although certain Chinese provinces have reopened, migrant workers are not able to return to work due to strict provincial border controls.

The availability and demand for nonferrous scrap have been unaffected on the U.S.-Mexico border. The shipments from North America to Asian destinations were not impacted, whereas shipments from Asian region reported minor delays on account of port disruptions related to coronavirus. Meantime, manufacturing operations on the border reported slowdown, owing to shortage of parts normally sourced from China.

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BIR noted that many previously announced business meetings and conferences are increasingly being postponed or cancelled. Also, inland logistics within China continues to remain affected badly.