Key Details
The OECD working paper Monitoring Trade in Plastic Waste and Scrap 2026 examines 2024 trade flows, principally using exporter-reported data for the customs category covering plastic waste, parings and scrap.
Global trade: 6.2 million tonnes, down from 6.7 million tonnes in 2023. The 7.7% decline was the largest annual fall since 2020.
OECD to non-OECD exports: Up 15%, or 0.21 million tonnes, following a 19% increase in 2023.
Leading non-OECD destinations for OECD exports: Malaysia (0.67 million tonnes), Viet Nam (0.43 million tonnes) and Indonesia (0.26 million tonnes).
India: Reported shipments fell by 0.03 million tonnes, or 32%, putting India outside the 20 largest global destinations in 2024.
Trade within regions: Exchanges between European OECD countries accounted for 48% of global recorded trade.
The Global Decline Masks a Rebound in OECD Exports to Non-OECD Countries
International trade in plastic waste and scrap has more than halved since 2014, following China’s import restrictions and tighter international controls that took effect in 2021. Recorded trade resumed its decline in 2024 after a temporary increase in 2023.
The direction of OECD exports tells a different story. Shipments to non-OECD countries increased in both 2023 and 2024, partly reversing the fall that followed the 2021 controls. Much of the overall trade still takes place among OECD countries, but Malaysia, Viet Nam and Indonesia remain major destinations for exports leaving the OECD.
Lower Export Values Raise a Question About Material Quality
Plastic waste and scrap traded between OECD countries had a higher average value per kilogram than OECD exports to non-OECD destinations, and that gap widened again in 2024. The OECD treats price as a possible indicatorof differences in sorting, quality and recyclability—not proof that lower-priced shipments were poorly managed.
The paper also tracks vinyl chloride polymer waste, a more tightly controlled category that includes PVC waste. OECD exports of this material to non-OECD countries rose 6% in 2024, albeit by a small 0.002 million tonnes. Japan was the largest OECD exporter and Malaysia the leading non-OECD destination.
India Received Less Recorded Plastic Waste
India’s 32% decline is a notable country-level change within the wider rise in OECD shipments to non-OECD destinations. It shows that the regional trend cannot be applied uniformly to every receiving country.
It also has a clear measurement boundary. The OECD’s trade data show reported shipments, not what happens to the material after arrival. The main customs category used in the analysis does not capture every possible route through which plastic-containing waste or processed plastic material may be traded. India’s lower recorded imports therefore cannot, on their own, establish a reduction in environmental risk.
Policy Relevance
For import oversight: India’s falling recorded shipments make the composition and destination of the remaining imports more useful to examine than their volume alone—particularly whether receiving facilities can process the material safely.
For waste-trade monitoring: The rise in OECD exports to non-OECD countries, alongside lower average export values, gives regulators a reason to track material quality and compliance with applicable trade controls. Price differences are a signal for scrutiny, not a finding of improper disposal.
For interpreting progress: Trade statistics should be read alongside evidence on classification, recycling and final treatment. The OECD paper cannot determine whether imported material was recycled, discarded or moved onward.
Relevant Question for Policy Stakeholders: What information on the type, receiving facility and eventual treatment of imported plastic waste would allow India to judge whether falling shipment volumes are also reducing environmental risks?
Follow the Full Working Paper Here: OECD, Monitoring Trade in Plastic Waste and Scrap 2026