The European Union imported 49.7 million tonnes of recyclable raw materials and exported 36.2 million tonnes to non-EU countries over the course of 2025, according to a Eurostat report.
This distinct trade imbalance means that the net import volume gap between incoming and outgoing shipments reached 13.5 million tonnes by the end of the annual period.
The net import volume observed during the year grew by around 1 million tonnes,
