Global trade in virgin polyethylene, fabricated polyethylene products and recyclable polyethylene is quantifiable and gives a more complete understand of trends for this polymer.

Virgin polymer is by far the largest volume. The combination of all grades of polyethylene – low, linear, HDPE, EVA, ethylene-alpha-olefin and other copolymers – are projected to total 71.4 million tons of global trade volume by yearend 2024, up 3% from the prior year.

There are four fabricated product groups made solely from polyethylene that have a specific Harmonized System code and so are visible in trade. These are projected to account for 12.7 million tons of trade in 2024:

Recyclable polyethylene, which is post-consumer or post-industrial waste, parings and scrap that is identifiable as polyethylene, is projected to account for 3 million tons of trade in 2024, up 2%.

From ITP’s World Trade Analyses of global trade in all grades of polyethylene virgin polymer, fabricated PE products and recyclable polyethylene, continuously updated based on statistics from all available countries..