PlasticsEurope/BPF
THE global plastics industry is recovering from the economic crisis, albeit slowly, according to the latest data.
Despite 50 years of continuous growth in the industry, the financial crisis led to a drop in global plastics production, says the data released from PlasticsEurope.
However, since then, figures presented at PlasticEurope’s press luncheon ‘Facts and Figures UK’ show there has been some positive development with an annual growth rate of about 8.7% on a worldwide scale.
“Despite global slow recovery, the plastics industry is optimistic that Europe remains a core centre of its activities,” said Kim Christiansen, Regional Director North of PlasticsEurope.
The figures show the demand for plastics materials in the UK was 3.7 million tonnes, an increase of 1.2%. Of this 3.7 million tonnes, 44.3% was packaging, while building and construction had a 19.2% share.
On the other hand, in Europe, demand for materials dropped by 3.2% but packaging kept the largest share of production, with 40.2%.
The next set of data regarding waste management in 2012 will be presented at K-Fair in October 2013.