Plastic waste bale prices in southern Europe have risen markedly over the past month, particularly in Italy, and also at Spain’s Ecoembes auction for HDPE bales. At the same time, prices in Northwest Europe (NWE) have been relatively stable, widening the gap between the two regions and increasing pressure on the margins of recyclers sourcing material from southern Europe. Higher virgin polymer prices give recycled pellet sellers more room to negotiate, but it remains uncertain whether the higher feedstock costs can be fully passed on to end users.
Among the developments cited are significant price increases for multiple bale types across Italy and Spain, and a growing divergence between NWE and southern European markets. Market participants also point to uncertainty over whether higher input costs can be fully passed through to end users.
Italy: sharp increases for HDPE and PP bales
Post-consumer HDPE bale prices in Italy rose to around €600/tonne ex works at an auction held towards the end of March, up from close to €300/tonne in February. For polypropylene (PP) bales, which had recently been sold in the €0–10/tonne ex works range, price indications were heard as high as €130/tonne, representing roughly a ten-fold month-on-month increase. It was noted that Italian auction prices are not confirmed by the auctioneers.
Sharp increases were also reported for PET bale prices, which ICIS tracks unofficially.
Drivers behind the rises: fraction quality and availability
Factors supporting higher price levels include the typical composition of Italian HDPE bales, which often contain a relatively high proportion of natural and white material compared with other sources in the region. This characteristic increases their value for packaging-grade pellet producers.
Signals also point to a systemic tightening of HDPE bale supply at the auction. Volumes available at each auction so far this year were heard to be at least 1,000 tonnes lower than in the same period last year. The reasons for the decline in supply are not entirely clear, but some market participants link it to macroeconomic conditions, lower discretionary spending, and consumers seeking to get the most out of each product they buy.
One recycler sourcing material from Italy described a change observed during HDPE washing: "When we process HDPE, until two years ago, when we wash it we got a lot of foam. Why? Because people didn’t finish the product, maybe at the end of the product there is some left. Now, because people have less cash to spend, they optimize everything, [they put] a bit of water inside the bottle, rinse it out, they want to finish the material... we now have less foam, we don’t find it in the product."
According to market feedback, although price increases were expected, many participants, particularly in the PET bale market, questioned the rationale for such large jumps when available volumes were reported to be at similar levels to the previous month.
Spain: increases at the Ecoembes auction
Elsewhere in southern Europe, increases were less sharp but were still recorded. At Spain’s quarterly Ecoembes auction for post-consumer HDPE, the average mixed-colour bale price rose to €243/tonne ex works for Q2, up from an average of €194/tonne ex works in Q1.
NWE: stable HDPE and moderate PP increases
Against the southern European backdrop, the NWE market has remained relatively stable. One bale buyer operating across the continent compared the situation by saying: "it’s like Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde with NWE and southern Europe".
In NWE, both post-industrial and post-consumer PP bales have seen moderate price rises since February, linked to increasing seasonal demand typically seen in spring. However, these increases were reported to be far smaller than the jumps heard in Italy. HDPE bale prices in NWE, meanwhile, have held stable so far in 2026.
In the rPET market, concerns have emerged that some bale sellers in other regions may try to replicate the increases seen in Italy during April. Buyers, however, are expected to resist such large increases, particularly as availability is not described as significantly tight.
Cost pressure and the question of pass-through
The higher bale prices have coincided with rising virgin polymer prices, which, according to the source, were linked to the Iran war. As a result, recycled pellet sellers have more scope to negotiate while still offering potential savings versus virgin material. At the same time, it was noted that despite good seasonal demand in some segments such as rPP, underlying buying appetite remains relatively low, and war-related disruption to energy and feedstock supply could further reduce it in the near term.
Whether recyclers will be able to pass higher costs on to end users remains an open question. One Italian recycler said: "For now, new, higher prices are still probably manageable compared with virgin. The question is: what will be the trend?"
Based on an article by Sam Lovatt, recycling editor at ICIS; additional reporting by Matt Tudball
