“ACC commends Administrator Wheeler, Assistant Administrator Dunn and the staff at EPA for all of their hard work and dedication to ensure the law is implemented as Congress envisioned.”

America's plastic makers are committed to recovering used plastics from the environment - both in the United States and in developing countries around the globe.

Global chemicals production rose by 1.4 percent in July following a 1.6 percent gain in June and declining activity for January through May.

U.S. production of major plastic resins increased 3.3 percent compared to the prior month.

"We encourage the signatories of the new U.S. Pact to work toward furthering circularity for plastics by modernizing recycling infrastructure and working to reduce plastic waste."

With four consecutive months of gains, the latest CAB reading is consistent with recovery in the U.S. economy, which is likely to be slow.