China allows Canada CCIC to inspect US scrap

China has authorized the Canadian branch of the China Certification and Inspection Group (CCIC) to conduct inspections and issue certificates for US scrap shipments bound to China, following a suspension of the group's US arm in early May.

The order is effective today through 4 June, according to scrap industry groups the Institute for Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) and the Bureau of International Recycling. Containers will still be subject to 100pc inspection upon arrival in China, ISRI said.

China on 4 May suspended US operations of the CCIC for 30 days, which has prevented exporters from getting the necessary documentation to send scrap to the country.

Exporters of copper and aluminum scrap have not been able to find enough alternative buyers for scrap that would typically be bound for China, causing surplus material to accumulate in yards and some of it being sold to domestic consumers at a discount.

The original orders have also created uncertainty about the status of containers already on the water after the announcement.