The volume of caustic soda in aqueous solution traded globally has ranged narrowly between 20.2 and 21.4 million tons per year from 2018 to 2022. During that period Asia-Pacific exports to other regions increased 270%, particularly impacting exports out of North America and the Middle East.

Except for a small increase, to 21.4 million tons in 2021, caustic soda global trade has been around 20.5 million tons per year from 2018 to 2022.

Exports out of Asia-Pacific to other regions surged from 1.0 million tons in 2018 to 2.7 million tons in 2022, on higher shipments to every other region.

Trade within the Asia-Pacific region itself expanded from 3.4 million tons in 2018 to 4.4 million tons in 2022, while imports into the region, mainly from North America and the Middle East, dropped by half, from 1.6 million tons to 0.8 million tons.

China was a key factor in the region’s trade, shipments up sharply in the last two years years:

Exports from North America abroad dropped 19% over the five-year period, to 4.0 million tons in 2022, on lower volumes to Asia-Pacific, Western Europe and Africa. Shipments to Latin America were steady.

Middle East exports were down 39%, to 602,000 tons in 2022, on lower volumes to every region except Eastern Europe, with a small gain.

From International Trader Publications’ Caustic Soda World Trade Analysis, a continuously updated online analysis of global trade in caustic soda.