Circular Economy Global Market Opportunities and Strategies to 2034

This report describes and explains the circular economy market and covers 2019-2024, termed the historic period, and 2024-2029, 2034F termed the forecast period. The report evaluates the market across each region and for the major economies within each region.

The global circular economy market reached a value of nearly $463.07 billion in 2024, having grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.78% since 2019. The market is expected to grow from $463.07 billion in 2024 to $793.36 billion in 2029 at a rate of 11.37%. The market is then expected to grow at a CAGR of 11.15% from 2029 and reach $1.34 trillion in 2034.

Growth in the historic period resulted from stringent environmental regulations and government policies, increasing digital resale platforms, increasing efficient waste management, rise of smart cities and rising environmental concerns. Factors that lack of standardization and design and technological limitations in material recovery.

Going forward, investment in recycling infrastructure, ai-powered circular intelligence and design, expansion of remanufacturing and refurbishment markets and growing consumer demand for sustainability will drive growth. Factors that could hinder the growth of the circular economy market in the future include limited infrastructure for recycling and reverse logistics, high upfront investment costs and impact of trade war and tariff.

Western Europe was the largest region in the circular economy market, accounting for 33.09% or $153.24 billion of the total in 2024. It was followed by Asia Pacific, North America and then the other regions. Going forward, the fastest-growing regions in the circular economy market will be Asia Pacific and Western Europe where growth will be at CAGRs of 13.12% and 11.35% respectively. These will be followed by Middle East and Eastern Europe where the markets are expected to grow at CAGRs of 10.50% and 10.32% respectively.

The global circular economy market is highly fragmented, with a large number of small players operating in the market. The top 10 competitors in the market made up 3.75% of the total market in 2024. Veolia Environnement S.A. was the largest competitor with a 1.06% share of the market, followed by Suez Group with 0.53%, Braskem S.A. with 0.47%, Cisco Systems Inc., with 0.32%, Coca-Cola Company, with 0.30%, IKEA with 0.25%, H&M Group with 0.24%, Adidas Group with 0.22%, Nike with 0.20% and Patagonia Inc. with 0.16%.

The circular economy market is segmented by type into clothing and textile waste, electronic waste, food waste, glass waste, plastic waste and wood waste. The plastic waste market was the largest segment of the circular economy market segmented by type, accounting for 25.87% or $119.8 billion of the total in 2024. Going forward, the electronic waste segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the circular economy market segmented by type, at a CAGR of 15.12% during 2024-2029.

The circular economy market is segmented by enterprise size into large enterprises and small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The large enterprises market was the largest segment of the circular economy market segmented by enterprise size, accounting for 65.89% or $305.12 billion of the total in 2024. Going forward, the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the circular economy market segmented by enterprise size, at a CAGR of 12.92% during 2024-2029.

The circular economy market is segmented by industry vertical into manufacturing industry, consumer goods, waste management and recycling, construction and building materials, automotive and transportation, food and agriculture and other industry verticals. The manufacturing industry market was the largest segment of the circular economy market segmented by industry vertical, accounting for 22.79% or $105.51 billion of the total in 2024. Going forward, the waste management and recycling segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the circular economy market segmented by industry vertical, at a CAGR of 14.42% during 2024-2029.

The top opportunities in the circular economy market segmented by type will arise in the electronic waste segment, which will gain $107.62 billion of global annual sales by 2029. The top opportunities in the circular economy market segmented by enterprise size will arise in the large enterprises segment, which will gain $195.52 billion of global annual sales by 2029. The top opportunities in the circular economy market segmented by industry vertical will arise in the waste management and recycling segment, which will gain $87.89 billion of global annual sales by 2029. The circular economy market size will gain the most in the USA at $65.69 billion.

Market-trend-based strategies for the circular economy market include new projects aim to advance textile and fiber recycling, strategic investment initiatives to combat plastic pollution, accelerating circular economy adoption through assessment metrics, transforming industrial waste into sustainable products, transforming food waste into circular economy solutions, new plant to extract precious metals from discarded electronics, initiatives empowering eco-conscious startups, AI-powered platforms for ESG compliance and reporting, strategic partnerships accelerating sustainable industry practices.

Player-adopted strategies in the circular economy market include focus on enhancing its business expertise through strategic acquisitions, business expertise through new program initiatives and through new launches.

To take advantage of the opportunities, the analyst recommends the circular economy market companies to focus on advancing textile and fiber recycling to strengthen circular economy growth, focus on strategic investments to scale circular economy solutions, focus on developing assessment tools to integrate circularity in product design, focus on converting operational waste into value-added products, focus on advancing e-waste recovery to strengthen resource circularity, focus on investing in and supporting sustainability-focused startups, focus on developing digital platforms to enhance compliance and resource efficiency, focus on expanding recycling infrastructure for renewable energy materials, focus on expanding operations in the electronic waste segment, focus on expanding operations in the electronic waste segment, focus on expanding operations in the waste management and recycling sector, expand in emerging markets, continue to focus on developed markets, focus on expanding large-scale food waste recycling and community partnerships, focus on building strategic partnerships to accelerate circular innovation, focus on developing value-based and cost-efficient pricing strategies, focus on strengthening consumer awareness and education campaigns, focus on expanding partnerships and digital engagement channels, focus on building skilled workforce and stakeholder collaboration.