Thailand’s Scrap Metal Crackdown: 714 Containers Seized and 100+ Plants Closed

Published: Apr 2, 2026 13:49

Save

The Thai Ministry of Industry recently intercepted 714 illegal waste containers at Laem Chabang Port and initiated repatriation procedures, while simultaneously shutting down over 100 non-compliant and high-pollution dismantling plants in Q1 2026. Since the global supply chain restructuring in 2025, Thailand has emerged as a critical hub with an annual copper scrap export volume of 332,000 physical tonnes. Should Thailand’s environmental oversight remain under high-pressure, the market widely expects the Asian copper scrap supply side to face increasing tightness.

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM‘s internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

For any inquiries or to learn more information, please contact: lemonzhao@smm.cn

For more information on how to access our research reports, please contact:service.en@smm.cn

Related News

14 mins ago

Chery Sets New Record with 148,777 Vehicles Exported in March, Up 72% YoY

[Chery Group Exported Nearly 150,000 Vehicles in March] On April 2, Chery Group announced that, after becoming the first Chinese-branded automaker to surpass 6 million in cumulative exports in February, it exported 148,777 vehicles in March, up 72% YoY, setting a new record for monthly automobile exports from China; cumulative exports in Q1 reached 393,311 vehicles, up 53.9% YoY. As of then, Chery had exceeded 100,000 vehicle exports in a single month for 11 consecutive months.

14 mins ago

22 mins ago

SAIC Achieves 3 Consecutive Monthly Sales Wins, Sells 973K Vehicles in Q1

[Three Consecutive Monthly Sales Championships, SAIC Sold 973,000 Vehicles from January to March] SAIC released its latest sales data. In March, it achieved vehicle sales of 376,000 units, successfully securing “three consecutive monthly sales championships” since the start of this year; from January to March, cumulative wholesale sales reached 973,000 units, up 3% YoY, maintaining a steady upward trend; retail sales reached 1.008 million units, making it the only automaker in China’s auto industry to surpass 1 million sales in Q1.

22 mins ago

45 mins ago

Copper Inventories in China’s Mainstream Regions Continued Destocking During the Week [SMM Weekly Data]

45 mins ago