1.1. Contact organisation
Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union
1.2. Contact organisation unit
E2: Environmental statistics and accounts; sustainable development
1.3. Contact name
Confidential because of GDPR
1.4. Contact person function
Confidential because of GDPR
1.5. Contact mail address
2920 Luxembourg LUXEMBOURG
1.6. Contact email address
Confidential because of GDPR
1.7. Contact phone number
Confidential because of GDPR
1.8. Contact fax number
Confidential because of GDPR
2.1. Metadata last certified
23 April 2025
2.2. Metadata last posted
23 April 2025
2.3. Metadata last update
23 April 2025
The purpose of Recycling – secondary material price indicator is to provide relevant data and to give a broader overview of the market for secondary materials.
In a circular economy, residual materials are recycled and re-injected into the economy as new raw materials - then called 'secondary raw materials'. Thus, secondary materials are waste materials that are recycled and can be used in manufacturing processes, instead or alongside 'virgin' raw materials.
They may have several benefits, both reducing wastes and increasing the security of raw materials supply. An accurate picture of the European raw materials sector must include the movements of raw materials originating from waste, i.e. secondary raw materials, crossing European boundaries both as imports and exports, as well as of intra-EU imports. The analysis is based on International Trade in Goods Statistics. Overall, cross-border movements of recyclable waste have significantly increased over the last decade.
The indicator considers the average monthly volume of trade in secondary materials (thousand tonnes) and their average monthly prices (euro/tonne).The price indicator is shown as monthly data or yearly average data.
This indicator is clearly relevant for obtaining a picture of trends in the markets for selected secondary raw materials measured in prices at EU level.
Recycling – secondary material price indicator is relevant to stakeholders concerned with long-term performance of secondary-material markets, as well as to policymakers developing recycling strategies in the circular economy. Both elements, trade volumes and prices, are shown within the same graphs to highlight current trends and volatility.
4.1. Data description
The scope of the “recyclable raw material” is defined and approximated in terms of relevant product codes selected from the list of Combined Nomenclature codes (CN-codes) used in International Trade in Goods Statistics (ITGS).
Recycling – secondary material price indicator includes the following selected types of material:
- Glass
- Paper and cardboard
- Plastics
The price indicator sums up all value (in euro) and volume (in tonnes) of all relevant international trade in goods codes. Value divided by volume gives the specific price indicator (in euro/tonne).
Value and volume are extracted from International Trade in Goods Statistics as intra-EU and extra-EU trade for import, extra-EU for export.
The price indicator is shown as monthly data or yearly average data (in euro/tonne).
The total volume of the traded secondary materials (import plus export) is shown as an additional indicator. This indicator (tonnes/month) shows the market activity and covers intra- import and extra- trade in the EU. This indicator is shown as monthly data (tonnes/month) for a month or the yearly average (12 times tonnes/month).
4.2. Unit of measure
Thousand euro.
Euro per tonne.
Tonne.
4.3. Reference Period
Calendar month.
Calendar year.
4.4. Accuracy - overall
The indicator is produced according to the high-level quality standards of European Statistics. Details on accuracy can be found in the metadata of the source datasets (see link: International trade in goods - aggregated and detailed data).
4.5. Source data
4.5.1. Source data - Organisation
ESS
4.5.2. Source data - Comment
Data source: European Statistical System (ESS)
Data provider: Statistical Office of the European Union (Eurostat).
International trade in goods statistics (Comext).
The following materials detail the international trade in goods statistics codes considered for the different waste categories.
- Glass secondary materials
- Paper and cardboard secondary materials
- Plastic secondary materials
5.1. Frequency of dissemination
Annual.
5.1.1. Frequency of dissemination - Grade
Every year5.1.2. Frequency of dissemination - Comment
Indicator is updated annually.
5.2. Timeliness
5.2.1. Timeliness - Grade
T+1 year5.2.2. Timeliness - Comment
New data points are disseminated within one year after the reference year.
6.1. Reference area
European Union - 27 countries (from 2020).
6.1.1. Reference Area - Grade
Only EU aggregate6.1.2. Reference Area - Comment
European Union - 27 countries (from 2020).
6.2. Comparability - geographical
Not available.
6.2.1. Comparability - geographical - Grade
Not Available6.2.2. Comparability - geographical - Comment
Indicators available on EU level.
6.3. Coverage - Time
6.3.1. Time Coverage - Grade
> 10 years6.3.2. Time Coverage - Comment
Presented time series starts in 2004 for annual data and in 2019 for monthly data.
6.4. Comparability - over time
6.4.1. Comparability - over time - Grade
> 4 data points6.4.2. Comparability - over time - Comment
Length of comparable time series without methodological break is longer than 4 data points.
7.1. Dissemination format - Publications
Eurostat, Statistics Explained: Recycling – secondary material price indicator - Statistics Explained.
7.2. Dissemination format - online database
See table cei_srm040.
7.3. Dissemination format - other
Eurostat dedicated section on Circular Economy.
Eurostat dedicated section on International trade in goods.
Copyrights:
Eurostat Copyright/licence policy - Statistics Explained is applicable.
