Markets for secondary raw materials: volumes, quality, prices, and likely global suppliers to the EU under given market conditions

The overarching goal of the contract is to improve the current knowledge and understanding of secondary material markets by providing quantitative data and information on plastic recyclates, aluminium scrap, steel scrap, copper scrap, paper and cardboard waste, and textile fibres. The study must include plastic, aluminium, copper, and steel (minimum requirement). Additionally, it is highly desirable to also incorporate paper/cardboard, and textile waste. The type of data and information requested as output of this study will be used to: - Understand secondary material markets, globally10, and how they interact with demand changes occurring at EU27 level. - Feed in-house JRC models, including partial and general equilibrium models (notably, FIDELIO and JRC-GEM-E3) thus allowing JRC to subsequently perform advanced dynamic economic analyses, notably on the effects of recycled content (e.g. in aluminium or plastic products) placed on EU market. For each of the materials listed above, the specific goals are to determine: o The current picture of international trade of secondary materials, (and recent history) in terms of volumes and value traded by country, market prices, as well as any existing trade barriers (tariffs or non-tariffs), and this analysis shall be made at the highest possible level of disaggregation. A description of the different qualities traded shall be done, when information is available, also providing estimates for quality shares under reasonable assumptions if external sources allow to do so. o The current picture of supply and production costs by country/region. This must include the identification of cost/price gaps between EU and its main trading partners. o The drivers of (and barriers to) future supply availability and costs -whether technical, regulatory, economic or social- which will affect trade going forward. This must include a discussion of the likely evolution of these drivers in key countries and regions which are current or potential future suppliers on international markets.