SUNSHINE RecycleFlash Weekly: May 11-15, 2026

May 15, 2026

Gold Poised for Weekly Loss

Gold traded near $4,650 an ounce on Friday and was on track to fall more than 1% for the week, pressured by accelerating US inflation that fueled concerns the Federal Reserve may need to keep interest rates elevated or even hike them. Data released earlier this week showed US wholesale inflation surged at its fastest pace since 2022 in April, while consumer prices posted their largest increase since 2023. Inflationary pressures have been driven largely by the prolonged Middle East conflict and the near-shutdown of the critical Strait of Hormuz, which has severely disrupted global energy shipments. Markets have now fully ruled out a Fed rate cut this year, with some traders increasingly pricing in the possibility of a rate hike by December. Meanwhile, President Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, discussing efforts to keep Hormuz open to preserve energy trade. Separately, India tightened gold import regulations further as authorities intensified measures to support the rupee. (Source: Trading Economics)

UBS Cuts Silver Price Forecasts as Supply Deficit Expected to Narrow

UBS has lowered its silver price forecasts, citing weaker investment demand, softer industrial consumption and rising mine supply that are expected to significantly reduce the market deficit in 2026. Strategists Wayne Gordon and Dominic Schnider said demand from the solar sector, jewelry and silverware is likely to weaken as elevated prices curb consumption. The bank estimates these factors could reduce silver demand by around 50 million ounces next year. UBS also pointed to declining investor interest, noting that silver ETF holdings and speculative futures positions have both fallen sharply in recent months. The bank reduced its 2026 investment demand forecast to 300 million ounces from more than 400 million ounces previously. The bank now expects silver prices to reach $85 per ounce by the end of the second quarter of 2026, down from its earlier $100 forecast. UBS also revised its estimate for the 2026 supply deficit to 60–70 million ounces, compared with a previous projection of 300 million ounces. Despite the downgrade, UBS said stronger gold prices should continue to provide support for silver markets. (Source: Kitco News)

Copper Falls for Second Consecutive Session

Copper futures dropped below $6.4 per pound on Friday, marking a second straight session of losses as elevated prices discouraged buying activity in China. The metal also faced pressure from accelerating US inflation, which reinforced expectations for a Federal Reserve interest rate hike later this year. Despite the recent decline, analysts continue to view Chinese copper demand as broadly resilient this year, with consumption from clean energy and technology-related industries helping offset weakness in the property and construction sectors. Copper also remains supported by a constructive long-term outlook driven by artificial intelligence-related infrastructure expansion, power grid modernization, and the broader global energy transition. On the supply side, China’s export restrictions on sulfuric acid, combined with disruptions to sulfur production in the Middle East, could tighten global supply conditions and provide additional structural support for prices. (Source: Trading Economics)

Phoenix Recycling and Sumitomo Explore Lithium Battery Processing Facility in New Zealand

Phoenix Recycling Group has partnered with Sumitomo Corporation to study the potential development of a lithium-ion battery processing facility in New Zealand as electric vehicle adoption and battery waste volumes continue to rise. The companies signed a memorandum of understanding to conduct a pre-feasibility study assessing infrastructure, logistics and market requirements for local battery processing. The proposed facility would process end-of-life lithium-ion batteries into “black mass,” a material containing recoverable minerals such as lithium, nickel and cobalt. Phoenix Recycling said the project could help reduce New Zealand’s reliance on offshore battery recycling while supporting domestic circular economy initiatives. General manager Jasmine Faulkner said growing use of electric vehicles and energy storage systems makes it increasingly important to establish local end-of-life battery solutions. The study will also evaluate future battery volumes and opportunities to build a long-term battery recycling industry in New Zealand and the wider Oceania region. (Source: EVs&Beyond)

APR and RecyClass Report Further Progress on Global Recyclability Standards

The Association of Plastic Recyclers and RecyClass have released the third annual progress report on their collaboration to align global plastic recyclability standards and design guidelines. The organizations said recent progress includes harmonized guidance for natural polypropylene packaging, agreement on tie layers compatible with polyethylene film recycling, and aligned definitions for blue tints used in PET packaging. APR President and CEO Steve Alexander said the partnership continues to improve consistency in recyclability guidance while supporting innovation across the plastics value chain. Over the past year, the groups conducted joint testing campaigns and shared technical findings to reduce duplication and improve consistency in recyclability evaluations. RecyClass Chairman Paolo Glerean said global harmonization is increasingly important as packaging regulations evolve across markets. Both organizations said they plan to continue collaborative testing to strengthen design-for-recycling guidelines for additional packaging formats. (Source: APR)

Syre Expands Target Partnership to Scale Textile-to-Textile Recycled Polyester

Textile recycling company Syre has expanded its partnership with retailer Target to accelerate the adoption of textile-to-textile recycled polyester across large-scale retail applications. Under the collaboration, Syre will support Target in integrating recycled polyester made from end-of-life textiles into high-volume categories such as apparel and home goods. The initiative is expected to enable the use of around 70,000 metric tons of recycled polyester, with broader product integration targeted by 2030. Syre CEO Dennis Nobelius said the partnership would help accelerate the commercialization of circular textile materials across the retail sector. Target’s Vice President of Responsible Sourcing and Sustainable Capabilities, Stephanie Grotta, said the collaboration aligns with the retailer’s focus on combining sustainability with product quality and value. The announcement comes as Syre advances plans for its first large-scale recycling facility in Southeast Asia, which is expected to begin construction in 2027. The company also counts H&M Group and Nike among its industry partners focused on circular textile development. (Source: Syre)

Smith+Nephew joins Healthcare Plastics Recycling Council

Global medical technology company Smith+Nephew has joined the Healthcare Plastics Recycling Council (HPRC), strengthening the organization’s efforts to advance plastics recycling and circularity in the healthcare sector. HPRC said Smith+Nephew will contribute expertise in medical device packaging engineering, sterilization methods, and regulatory compliance — areas considered critical to overcoming barriers in healthcare plastics recycling. The company’s sustainability strategy focuses on reusable, recyclable and renewable packaging materials, along with increasing the use of post-consumer recycled content and expanding mono-material packaging formats. “We’re thrilled to be joining HPRC and contributing to transformative solutions for healthcare plastics sustainability,” said Katya Hantel, Vice President of ESG at Smith+Nephew. HPRC is currently working on several initiatives aimed at improving healthcare plastics recycling, including assessments of recycling infrastructure, packaging labelling standardization, and regional hospital recycling programs. (Source: HPRC)

Nouryon Launches Recycled Polypropylene Performance Solution

Dutch specialty chemicals company Nouryon has introduced Perkadox PM-60ST-GR, a new organic peroxide technology designed to improve the performance of recycled polypropylene. The company said the solution is the first commercially available organic peroxide product specifically developed to restore the properties of degraded recycled polypropylene, enabling greater use of recycled content in packaging, automotive and consumer goods applications that have traditionally relied on virgin plastic. Added during the extrusion stage of polymer recycling, the product rebuilds the polymer’s molecular structure to improve strength, consistency and processing performance. According to Nouryon, testing showed the technology increased melt strength by up to tenfold while improving melt viscosity and processing control. Alain Rynwalt, senior vice president for Performance Materials at Nouryon, said the technology could help recyclers and processors expand the use of recycled polypropylene in higher-performance applications. (Source: Nouryon)

Emerald Packaging Expands into Southern California with First Acquisition

Emerald Packaging has expanded its manufacturing footprint in Southern California through the acquisition of flexible packaging assets from Blower-Dempsay Corp. in Santa Ana, marking the first acquisition in the company’s 63-year history. The new facility will serve produce customers across Arizona and northern Mexico, strengthening Emerald’s regional supply capabilities and reducing transit times to key cross-border markets. Emerald said the expansion is expected to increase its workforce from 250 employees to more than 300 by the end of the year. The Santa Ana site includes an eight-color Windmoeller & Hoelscher printing press, two laminators, slitters and a thermal oxidizer, with additional equipment upgrades planned. President Pallavi Joyappa said the acquisition supports the company’s long-term growth strategy while providing additional production capacity and operational redundancy. Blower-Dempsay President Brad Jordan said the partnership aligns two family-owned businesses with similar operating values and customer-focused cultures. (Source: PR Newswire)

Recyclekaro Partners with IIT Bombay on Battery Mineral Recovery Technology

Recyclekaro India Limited has partnered with Indian Institute of Technology Bombay to strengthen the recovery of critical minerals from used batteries and improve recycling efficiency. Evergreen Lithium Recycling, a Recyclekaro group company, signed a technology licensing agreement with IIT Bombay to deploy advanced extraction technology aimed at improving urban mining and battery material recovery processes. The company said the technology could reduce processing costs by 30% to 40% while improving operational efficiency in lithium-ion battery recycling. The collaboration is intended to support India’s growing electric vehicle and energy storage sectors by increasing domestic recovery of battery precursor materials and reducing reliance on imported raw materials. Rajesh Gupta, founder and managing director of Recyclekaro, said the partnership highlights the importance of collaboration between industry and academia in building India’s critical minerals ecosystem. The agreement also supports broader efforts to expand India’s circular economy and localize supply chains for clean energy technologies. (Source: Chemical Today)

Cleanfarms Reports Record Year for Agricultural Plastics Recycling

Canadian agricultural recycling organization Cleanfarms reported record collection volumes in 2025 as recycling practices continued to expand across the country’s farming sector. In its latest annual report, the nonprofit said it recycled 2.5 million kilograms of pesticide and fertilizer containers during the year, up 13% from 2024. The organization also collected a record 1.1 million kilograms of small and large tote bags. Cleanfarms said strong nationwide participation helped drive new collection records in Manitoba, Alberta and Quebec through a mix of regulated and voluntary recycling programs. The organization also introduced recycling for small containers under 23 liters in Newfoundland for the first time. Interim Executive Director Shane Hedderson said the results reflect growing industry and farmer participation in agricultural plastics recycling. The report also highlighted progress in closed-loop recycling projects, including refillable container bases produced using recycled agricultural plastics. (Source: Cleanfarms)

APR Calls for U.S. Trade Action over Low-Priced PET Imports

The Association of Plastic Recyclers has urged the Office of the United States Trade Representative to take action against what it described as unfairly traded PET imports, arguing that low-priced overseas material is undermining domestic recycling capacity in the United States. APR President and CEO Steve Alexander testified before the USTR as part of its Section 301 investigation into foreign oversupply and its impact on U.S. industries. According to APR, seven U.S. PET recycling facilities have closed over the past 15 months, resulting in the loss of nearly 25% of domestic PET recycling capacity and more than 600 million pounds of annual processing capacity. The organization attributed much of the pressure to rising imports from countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, South Korea, Vietnam, India and China. Alexander said distorted import pricing has created conditions that domestic recyclers cannot compete against, leading to lower operating rates and plant closures. APR called for measures under Section 301(b) while requesting exemptions for imports from Mexico and Canada, citing the integrated North American PET supply chain under the USMCA framework. (Source: APR)

FAO Calls for Stronger Global Risk Assessment Standards for Recycled Plastic Food Packaging

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has warned that the growing use of recycled plastics in food packaging requires more robust and globally harmonized chemical risk assessments to ensure food safety. In a new report, Food safety implications of recycled plastics and alternative food contact materials, the agency said recycled packaging offers environmental benefits but also raises concerns over potential chemical contamination and migration into food. The report comes as the global food packaging market continues to expand rapidly, driven by demand for processed foods and beverages. FAO said less than 10% of plastic waste is currently recycled, but the share is expected to increase, heightening safety considerations. It called for improved waste sorting, cleaner recycling processes and validated methods to detect micro- and nanoplastics. The agency also urged international alignment of regulations through bodies such as the Codex Alimentarius Commission, warning that inconsistent standards could create trade and safety risks. (Source: FAO)