13th Five Year Plan to reduce petrochemical overcapacities / Seven new hubs to be completed by 2020 / Coal-based production to rise dramatically

Swiss Environment Office life-cycle analysis says existing collection and recycling systems ecologically sound / No such thing as "good" and "bad" packaging / PE pouches enable significant weight savings / PET bottles best suited for carbonated drinks

LyondellBasell declares force majeure for HDPE from Plock

Global demand expected to rise by 6% per year to 2020 / Customers switching to more durable products / Grand View Research study

German exports of plastics machinery to Mexico reach EUR 155m / Trade more than doubles in four years / VDMA to represent 15 companies at “Plastimagen” in November

Plastic accounted for 30% of packaging shipments in financial year 2013 / Japan Packaging Institute data

Most locally produced PVC in China sourced from coal / Carbide process dominant in developing north, northwestern regions / Market structurally oversupplied / Prices on steady downward spiral

Half-year rise in imports aided by government stimulus measures / Exports slow but still positive / Asia sees largest increase

Middle East drives production growth in EMEA / Region consumed 5.8m t last year / Steady gains / Flexible foam most dominant end application / Latest IAL Consultants report

Demand for plastics to expand fourfold in next five years / Smaller batch sizes will continue to challenge economies of scale / Equipment manufacturers dominate supply chain / SmarTech report

Strong growth in emerging countries / Germany still doing relatively well in global comparison / US and Japan are the big losers / Chinese output will soon amount to half of global production / ZVEI study

Founding members of Plastics 2020 Challenge adopt framework programme / Join "Pledge4Plastics" to raise awareness and lift UK rates

Pledge 4 Plastics campaign underway across the UK / Goal to raise collection of plastic packaging among households / Global companies partner with authorities and lend support

Europe recycles 65 bn bottles in 2013 / Call for collection systems to be standardised

Slovakia and Czech Republic en route to becoming key car production centres / Triangle between Prague, Bratislava and Zilina emerges as an OEM stronghold / Hyundai draws South Korean companies to Europe