The worldwide production of plastics reached 413.8 million metric tons in 2023. The versatility of this group of materials accounts for the continued growth in production year after year. In tandem with that growth, the market value of plastics also continues to grow. What plastics are and how they are made Plastics are used in a wide variety of products and have displaced other materials – such as wood, metal, and glass – that were previously used for the applications that plastics now dominate. One of the main applications for plastics use is plastic packaging. The production of plastic requires four basic steps: the acquirement of raw material, synthesizing a basic polymer, compounding the polymer into a usable fraction, and lastly, molding or shaping the plastic. Leading plastic producers Asia was the largest plastics producer in the world in 2023. That year, the country accounted for 33 percent of global production. Over recent years, China produced an average of approximately nine million metric tons of plastic products each month. The rest of Asia ranks second worldwide in terms of plastic production, with a share of 19 percent in 2023.

It is projected that the global production of thermoplastics will amount to 445.25 million metric tons in 2025. Annual production volumes are expected to continue rising in the following decades, rising to approximately 590 million metric tons by 2050. this would be an increase of more than 30 percent compared with 2025. Between 2010 and 2020, the global production of plastics has increased from 270 million metric tons to almost 370 million metric tons.

Global plastics use has increased six-fold since 1980, reaching a high of 460 million metric tons in 2019. Global plastics use was expected to decrease 2.2 percent year-on-year in 2020. This decline was mainly a result of COVID-19-related lockdown measures, which had a significant impact on plastics production and use. The last notable reduction in plastics use was during the 2008 /2009 global financial crisis. Global plastics use is forecast to continue rising in the coming decades.

According to a 2023 forecast, the use of polypropylene is forecast to be the most used polymer in 2040. Consumption is expected to amount to 120 million metric tons that year. This compared to an actual consumption of 70 million metric tons 2020.

China accounted for 33 percent of global plastic materials production in 2023, making it the world's largest plastic producer by far. The rest of Asia accounted for an additional 19 percent while North America held another 17 percent share of global plastic production. The total worldwide production of plastics surpassed 413 million metric tons in 2023. Plastic: the material to replace many Plastics are used in almost every segment of life – from everyday life to industrial applications. On a global level, plastics have displaced many traditional materials, such as wood, stone, horn and bone, leather, paper, metal, glass, and ceramic. Global plastics use is projected to continue rising over the coming decades to reach more than 1.2 billion metric tons by 2060. China: the plastic leader As the leading manufacturing economy and exporter of goods in the world, it is not surprising that China is the world’s largest producer of plastic as well. China's monthly production of plastics ranges between six and 12 million metric tons.

The amount of plastic waste generated worldwide is projected to triple by 2060, to surpass one billion metric tons. This dramatic growth is set to be fueled by rising populations and economic growth. With so much plastic waste generated, proper waste management will be urgently needed to reduce environmental impact. However, projections show that landfilling will continue to be the main disposal method worldwide by 2060, with recycling accounting for less than 20 percent. Much of the plastic waste generated over the coming four decades will be caused by packaging.

In December 2024, China produced roughly 7.66 million metric tons of plastic products. Since January 2020, the highest monthly output of plastic products was recorded in December 2021, at 7.95 million metric tons. Plastics production in China China is the world’s largest plastic producer by far, accounting for around one-third of global plastics production. China's share of plastic materials production has been steadily increasing in recent years, rising from 26 percent in 2014 to 32 percent in 2021. Chinese plastics industry With China's plastic export volume continuously growing over the past few decades, the industry has undergone a transition from quantity to quality; the future development of this industry is focusing more on technological innovation with eco-friendly concepts. This is partly due to consumers' health concerns as well as international environmental concerns.

An estimated 360 million metric tons of plastic waste was generated in 2020. In a business-as-usual scenario, in which no further policy measures are implemented, plastic waste generation is forecast to nearly double by 2040, surpassing 615 million metric tons.

In the year 2040, the application of plastics is forecast to increase across all sectors. Use of plastic in the transportation sector is forecast to more than double, from over 60 million metric tons in 2020 to nearly 115 metric tons in 2040.

In 2020, the amount of plastic packaging used stood at 139 million metric tons globally. By 2040, the amount of plastic packaging used is forecast to increase to 234 million metric tons in the sector.

China is the world's leading plastic product exporting nation, exporting over 14.2 million tons of plastic in 2019 alone. In the last few decades, plastic has become an important aspect in everyday life as it is used in packaging, construction, transportation, and many other industries. China’s share of global plastics production has steadily increased from 26 percent in 2014 up to 31 percent in 2019, maintaining its firm grip on the global plastic industry.

Consumption of plastics in China

As the most populous country in the world, China has a high volume of plastic consumption. The Chinese government has tried to implement various bans on plastic use amongst its citizens, but most of those had little impact on consumption in recent years, as China’s consumption volume of plastic products further grew up to 90.9 million metric tons as of 2020. In July 2020, the Chinese authorities have introduced stricter restrictions on plastic provisions such as plastic bags in supermarkets, and plastic straws from take-away vendors, hoping to finally curb the high plastic consumption in the country.

Plastic waste management in China

With such high plastic consumption, a large share ended up in landfills. The Chinese government in 2020 pledged to end the use of single-use plastic bags and items from its major cities by the end of the year, as these items are the most difficult to dispose of and recycle. Despite a dip observed in 2018, China's disposal volume of plastic products has fluctuated at around 38 million metric tons in the last two years. Furthermore, the recycling rate of plastic products in China has been dropping over the past few years, and remained relatively low at 17.6 percent as of 2020.

In a business-as-usual scenario, in which no further policy measures are implemented, plastic waste generation worldwide is forecast to surpass 616 million metric tons by 2040. In that scenario, landfilling is expected to remain the main method for plastic waste management, accounting for roughly 305 million tons. Over 100 million metric tons of plastic waste are expected to be mismanaged every year.

An estimated 152 million metric tons of mismanaged plastic waste had accumulated in the world's oceans and rivers as of 2020. The stock of plastic waste accumulated in these aquatic environments is projected to double by 2040, to 300 million metric tons.

An estimated 20 million metric tons of plastic waste leaked into the environment in 2020. In a business-as-usual scenario, in which no further policy measures are implemented, this figure is projected to increase by 50 percent, to reach 29.9 million tons in 2040. Global lifecycle low stringency policies or a focus on action in advanced economies alone would not be able to reduce the leakage in comparison to 2020 levels. Meanwhile, high stringent global downstream action could see plastic leakage drop to 13.5 million tons by 2040.

India and China accounted for the largest shares of global mismanaged plastic waste in 2019, at 21 percent and 20 percent, respectively. The top 10 countries shown accounted for almost three quarters of global mismanaged plastic waste that year. The region that generates the most mismanaged plastic waste is Asia, accounting for 65 percent of the global total.

Although many developing countries lack the infrastructures to properly manage plastic waste, wealthy countries still export their plastic waste to them. Turkey, for example, accounts for roughly 2.7 percent of global mismanaged plastic waste, yet received roughly 700,000 metric tons of plastic waste exports from the European Union in 2020.

This statistic shows the market share of bioplastics worldwide in 2015, with forecasted figures for 2020 and 2030. By 2030, it is expected that bioplastics will account for a 40 percent share of the global plastics market.

In 2022, the global market value of pharmaceutical plastic bottles reached a total of 11.16 billion U.S. dollars. Looking at different plastic material types, industry experts project a significant increase in market value throughout the forecast period, reaching a global market value of nearly 14.1 billion U.S. dollars in 2030. HDPE and LDPE is expected to hold its position as the leading material category in the pharmaceutical plastic bottles market during this period, contributing 3.65 billion U.S. dollars in 2022 and an estimated 4.93 billion U.S. dollars by 2030.

In 2020, the most commonly used engineering plastic was acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), resin that accounted for more than 40 percent of the global market demand. Furthermore, it is forecast that the ABS market will grow to 38 billion U.S. dollars by 2024.

Bioplastics had a global market value of approximately 9.1 billion U.S. dollars as of 2020. By 2033, it is expected that the global market value of bioplastics will reach 30.9 billion U.S. dollars.

The state of Telangana generated the largest amount of plastic waste in India in financial year 2021, at almost 473,000 metric tons. Tamil Nadu and West Bengal ranked second and third that year, with each also generating over 400,000 metric tons of plastic waste. Plastic waste trends in India India's plastic waste generation exceeded four million metric tons in financial year 2021, marking a 19 percent increase from the previous year. In comparison to FY 2017, this figure has more than doubled. Plastic waste generation in the country is expected to continue growing, as plastic use in India is forecast to increase nearly six-fold between 2020 and 2060. How does India compare with the rest of the world? Despite being one of the largest plastic consumers worldwide, accounting for a share of 6.5 percent of global plastic use in 2019, the average Indian has one of the lowest plastic consumptions worldwide. According to estimates, per capita plastic waste generation in India stood at 14 kilograms in 2019, less than one-third of the global average, and 16 times lower than in the U.S.