An economy in trouble!

It’s not easy—to say the least—to predict how commodity prices, and plastics prices in particular, will evolve. Prices rose sharply between the start of the war in the Middle East and April 2026, before finally leveling off in June. According to the Trading Economics website, “over the past month, the price of polypropylene is reported to have fallen by only 6.81%, and that of polyethylene by 3.52%.”

Nevertheless, according to Fortune Business Insights, the global plastics market—which was valued at $533.59 billion in 2025—is projected to grow from $560.38 billion in 2026 to $832.62 billion by 2034. Of course, this all depends on geostrategic events that could influence these forecasts.

The current general uncertainty is leading to a marked economic slowdown in France and the eurozone. According to Trading Economics, “industrial production in the eurozone fell by 0.2% in May 2026 compared to the previous month. This decline was driven by a decrease in the production of durable consumer goods and intermediate goods. Among the major economies of the eurozone, Ireland experienced the sharpest decline (-5.2%).”

Another interesting point is that the Chinese economy grew by 4.3% year-over-year in the second quarter of 2026, compared to 5.0% in the first quarter. This is the lowest annual growth rate since the fourth quarter of 2022.

All of this suggests that, paradoxically, while rising commodity prices remain a cause for concern, so does the economic slowdown.