In Circle Economy’s report, Circularity Gap Report 2026: The Value Gap, suggests that, each year, €25.4tr in economic value is lost due to resource inefficiencies, premature product disposal, and underutilised assets.

These losses reflect not only direct economic costs, but also hidden environmental and social burdens, including pollution, resource depletion, human health impacts and reduced labour productivity.

The report notes that resource use has tripled since 1970, and more than half of global greenhouse gas emissions, most biodiversity loss, and water stress stem from the extraction and processing of materials. Human-made materials now outweigh all living biomass, yet this surge in material consumption is no longer delivering an increasing return.

Global resource productivity, the economic output generated per unit of material used, has effectively stalled over the past decade. Businesses and economies are consuming more material inputs without real efficiency gains.

The report calls for coordinated action across business, finance and policy, creating an enabling environment for circular economy solutions by aligning incentives, reducing risk, improving information flows, and correcting market failures that currently favour linear outcomes.

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