The value of wholesale sales from scrap yards in Mexico decreased 17.2 percent, year-over-year, in January, the seventh straight drop, according to a SteelOrbis analysis of data from national statistics agency Inegi. Employed personnel decreased 0.6 percent in January, the fourth consecutive decline.
The information from Inegi corresponds to the trade with wholesale sales of waste materials, which includes the sale of metal scrap, glass, plastic, paper and cardboard, among other reusable waste. The 17.2 percent drop in sales corresponds to total activities.
Commercial activity within the scrap companies analyzed by Inegi show that more than 90 percent of sales were concentrated in three products: metal scrap concentrated 68.4 percent of the industry's total sales; Paper and cardboard concentrated 13.3 percent; and plastic for reuse 9.6 percent.
As of the latest records in 2018, there are around 10,700 businesses engaged in the wholesale of scrap metal.