Tag Archives: Russia

China Commodity Polymer Trade April 2022 Reflected Continued Weak Economic Activity From Covid Lockdowns

Polymer imports in April were almost as low as during Chinese New Year; exports of PVC hit a new high and shipments of PET also remained high; exports of fabricated plastic products continued slow.

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Russia’s Exports of Polyolefins to Western and Eastern Europe

Russia exports more than twice as much ethylene and propylene polymers to other Eastern European countries than it does to Western Europe. Turkey and Poland are the top two destinations in Eastern Europe. Flows to Poland, other EU countries within Eastern Europe, and the Ukraine are most likely to be affected by the war in Ukraine.

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Impressive Surge in US Exports of Polyethylene in March, 2022

The United States exported 966,000 tons of ethylene polymers in March, 2022, an increase of 160,000 tons over February. Shipments of every PE grade were up in March. Further increases are likely with startup of new capacity.

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Western Europe Exports to Russia More of Most Major Polymers than it Imports from Russia, with the Exception of Polypropylene.

Western Europe’s polymer trade with Russia, particularly in polyolefins, styrenic polymers and PVC, will be impacted by sanctions and broken supply chains from the war in Ukraine.

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Russia’s Leading Exports and Imports of Polymers, Chemicals and Gases

The war in Ukraine, and with it sanctions and broken supply chains, will likely impact both exports from and imports into Russia of many products.

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Ukraine Exports and Imports Numerous Polymers and Chemicals that Will Likely be Impacted by the Conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

Ukraine exports sizable volumes of benzene, caustic soda, propylene monomer and PVC, and, imports polyethylene, polypropylene, liquefied propane and butane gas and PET.

Ukraine’s top export markets include Italy, Poland, Turkey, Czech Rep., Russia and Spain, among others. Russia is Ukraine’s top import source for LDPE, polypropylene, methanol and liquefied propane and butane gas.

This table shows Ukraine’s total exports and imports in 2021 and top trading partners for each:

From International Trader Publications’ World Trade Analyses, continuously updated analysis of trade between countries and regions for each product.

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Trends in Russia’s Exports of Polyolefins

Much lower exports to Asia-Pacific in 2021 versus 2020, due to a steep drop in shipments to China, shifted Russian exports toward Eastern Europe, Western Europe and, with smaller volumes, Latin America and Africa.

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China’s Imports of Commodity Polymers Through June 2021 Were Down 11% From the First Half of 2020; Exports Jumped 87%.

After a brief spike in March following the Chinese New Year, imports into China trended downward, a different trend than had been seen over the last three years. Also unusual were exports out of China, which began rising toward the end of 2020 and soared to unprecedented levels in the first half of 2021.

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Russia’s PE and PP Exports Soar in 2020; LPG Exports Drop

SIBUR’s addition of new polyolefins capacity in western Siberia was reflected in Russia’s export figures for 2020 which set new record highs for HDPE, LLDPE and PP. As a result, Russia exported substantially lower volumes of liquefied propane gas, which is used as a feedstock in the new plant.

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Record Imports into China of LLDPE and HDPE, and, Changes in Suppliers

As it did in 2009 during the financial crisis, China buttressed the global petrochemical industry with record imports of LLDPE and HDPE during the 2020 pandemic. Volume was heavy from May through October 2020. Much higher imports from North America (US), Eastern Europe (Russia) and other Asia-Pacific, and a drop in imports of LLDPE from the Middle East, were prominent supply changes.

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