Plastics Scorecard, September 2026: Resin Prices Rose Round After Round, Another Round Lands on 1 October, and Film Prices Went the Other Way
Indian polymer makers revised prices on at least seven separate days in September, and Reliance and OPaL announced another increase for 1 October. At the same time, a film maker cut packaging film prices twice. Oil touched $104 before easing to about $99. Here is what the month's numbers say for converters, recyclers and collectors.
Recykal Times Desk·30 Sept 2026·4 min read·4 sources
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Our Top 10 round-up covered the policy side of plastics in September: the 40% recycled-content rule and the Bangkok treaty talks. This scorecard is about prices: how often they moved, which way, and who is getting squeezed as a result.
September in numbers
Indicator
Figure
Brent crude
$94.11 (1 Sep), $104.46 (28 Sep), $98.67 (30 Sep)
Days with Reliance or Indian Oil polymer price revisions
At least 7 (1, 5, 7, 11, 16, 21 and 23 September)
Reliance PVC
Up ₹2 a kg twice (1 and 7 September)
HDPE, Reliance and Indian Oil
Up ₹2 a kg on 16 September
LLDPE film, Reliance and Indian Oil
Up ₹3 a kg on 16 September
Virgin PET
Up ₹2 a kg from 24 September
BOPP and BOPET film
Cut ₹3 a kg on 30 September, after a ₹3 BOPP cut on 24 September
China polymer futures, September
PP up about 4.4%, PE up about 3.3%
(Price revisions as reported by industry price trackers. China figures are Dalian futures month changes.)
Seven rounds in one month
Price revisions came almost weekly. Indian Oil raised polypropylene (PP) on 1, 5 and 11 September. Reliance raised PP on 11 and 21 September, alongside earlier moves in other grades. Both raised high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) film grades on 16 September. Reliance also raised PVC twice and low-density polyethylene (LDPE) on 23 September, with its extrusion coating grade rising much more than general grades.
Oil explains much of this. Brent went from about $94 on 1 September to about $104 on 28 September, before easing to about $99 by 30 September, as Middle East crude supply was reported back near pre-war levels. In China, PP and PE futures also rose over the month, so Indian prices moved with the region.
And another round on 1 October
On 30 September, Reliance announced a fresh set of increases from 1 October: about ₹1 a kg on most PP grades, ₹1 on HDPE pipe and film grades, ₹1.5 to ₹2 on LLDPE, and ₹1 on most LDPE grades, with ₹10 a kg on LDPE extrusion coating and moulding grades. OPaL raised PP by ₹2.5 a kg. Reliance kept PET and PVC prices unchanged.
Recykal Times analysis: Pausing PET and PVC after September's increases suggests producers are waiting to see where oil settles after its late-month fall. PVC also has support from a minimum import price of $766 a tonne on suspension PVC, in place since July 2026, which stops cheap imports from undercutting domestic prices.
Film makers are cutting while resin rises
On 30 September, one packaging film maker cut prices of BOPP and BOPET films by ₹3 a kg, a week after an earlier ₹3 cut to BOPP. Their main raw materials, PP and PET, rose over the same period.
Recykal Times analysis: When input costs rise and selling prices fall, converters' margins shrink from both sides. Under that pressure, converters are more likely to look for cheaper inputs, and recycled PP and PET granules, where the grade allows, become more attractive. For recyclers, September's price pattern is a better sales pitch than any regulation.
Enforcement is getting local
In Bengaluru, a city corporation fined a cinema chain ₹75,000 on 17 September, including ₹25,000 for banned single-use plastic, and fined a mall about ₹50,839. City officials said ward-level inspections would continue. Enforcement of single-use plastic bans is increasingly happening through city fines on businesses.
The global talks
Plastics treaty negotiators ended an informal round in Bangkok on 30 September without a formal outcome. The meeting was preparatory. The Chair is expected to revise his working text before the next formal session, planned for March 2027.
What this means for you
Converters: With resin rising and film prices falling, check where recycled granules can safely replace some virgin material. Lock in supply before the next revision round if you can.
Recyclers: Talk to converters now. Their margin squeeze is your opening, especially for PP and LLDPE film grades.
Traders: Expect more revisions while oil stays volatile. Price quotes may need to be revisited weekly, not monthly.
Kabadiwalas and collectors: Rising virgin prices usually lift what recyclers can pay for clean, sorted plastic. Keep PP, HDPE and films separate to get the best rate.
October watchlist
1 October 2026: New Reliance and OPaL price revisions take effect.
Oil: whether Brent stays near $100 or eases further, which will decide the next round.
Film prices: whether converters cut again or start passing on costs.
31 October 2026: The reported deadline for plastic processors' FY 2025-26 annual EPR returns.
The bottom line
September's plastics story is a squeeze in the middle of the chain. Resin makers kept raising prices, film makers kept cutting, and converters are caught between them. That pressure pushes them towards recycled material, which is good news for recyclers and collectors who can deliver clean, consistent grades.
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