The European Union exported 131pc more aluminum scrap at 94,736mt and 96pc more copper scrap at 61,382mt in May on an annual basis, according to EuroStats.
In May, Germany was the largest exporter among member states. It shipped 21,587mt of aluminum scrap and 14,627mt of copper scrap during the month, up 111pc and 98pc, respectively, from May 2020. Spain saw the largest growth in aluminum scrap exports, more than tripling at 15,889mt in May over the same period last year. For copper scrap, France’s shipments rose 350pc to 3,070mt in the same period under comparison.
India was the largest importer of aluminum scrap from the EU in May at 20,720mt, up from 3,858mt in May 2020. Turkey followed with a 237pc increase in imports to 11,899mt in the same period. Meanwhile, China imported the biggest volumes of copper scrap in May from the EU, standing at 25,193mt, up 143pc from the prior-year period. India was second at 8,121mt, an increase of 94pc in the same timeframe.