Imports of ethylene into Western Europe increased by over 200% in 2019 versus 2018, and imports of propylene jumped 70%, based on latest statistics from reporting countries.
Ethylene imports into Western Europe from North America (United States) were well over 100,000 tons in 2019, up from just 7000 tons in 2018. Latin America (mainly Brazil, with small volumes from Argentina) supplied 70,000 tons, versus none in the prior year. Imports from the Middle East (Saudi Arabia and UAE in roughly equal volumes), more than doubled, to over 60,000 tons.
There was more than a ten-fold increase in propylene monomer imports from North America in 2019, to over 230,000 tons. Volumes from Latin America and the Middle East were each over 40,000 tons, both up fro the prior year. In contrast, supplies from Asia-Pacific fell sharply.
From International Trader Publications Ethylene World Trade Report and Propylene World Trade Report, continuously updated on line analysis of global trade.