How are PE imports moving in China?

Despite a very critical international situation in terms of supply of polymers due to the scarcity of supply, the difficulty in finding containers and due to the now suffocating prices, the Chinese giant, whose economy grew in 2020 despite the pandemic, continues to also set records in the field of plastic polymer imports.

In the analysis carried out by Pinar Polat, the Chinese PE market had excellent performances in terms of quantity, especially with regards to LDPE .

In fact, Chinese PE imports reached a new record in January and February, according to data from the General Administration of Customs.

The customs office processed this data for the first two months of the year (2021) taking into account distortions caused by the week-long Lunar New Year holiday, which this year was in mid-February.

China was the only major economy that recorded growth for 2020, managing to expand by 2.3%. The country's success in controlling COVID-19, stimulus measures and low cash rates after the lockdown was lifted in April have increased its share of global trade and investment.

As a result, the country's cumulative PE imports reached a new record in the first two months of 2021, surpassing 2019 volumes.

Total PE imports in the January-February period saw an annual increase of 8.3%, exceeding 2.5 million tonnes, the highest figure in ChemOrbis import statistics dating back to 2001.

Although February PE volumes declined during the holiday season, January-February total values remain strong.

In fact, the slowdown in February was widely expected as commercial activities are normally reduced during the Chinese New Year celebrations.

Millions of workers return to their hometowns to spend the holidays in traditional ways, however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year's holiday travel has been less hectic.

On the other hand, cumulative PE imports in the first two months of 2021 were still positive in a year-on-year comparison. Among all PE products, China's imports of HDPE recorded a slight annual decline during this period, while imports of LDPE and LLDPE recorded increases.

HDPE

Total HDPE volumes in the January-February period recorded a slight decrease of 3.3% compared to the same period last year, standing at 1,097,065 tonnes.

During this period, Saudi Arabia was the main supplier of HDPE to China with over 230,000 tons. Iran followed Saudi Arabia with 202,838 tonnes.

LDPE

Total imports of LDPE in the January-February period, however, increased by approximately 24% on an annual basis, reaching 544,676 tonnes.

Iran remained the main supplier of LDPE to China with nearly 125,000 tonnes.

LLDPE

As for LLDPE in the first two months of 2021, volumes increased by 17% compared to the same period last year, standing at 920,985 tonnes.

During this period, Saudi Arabia was China's top supplier with over 200,000 tonnes, while Singapore was the second largest supplier with 174,046 tonnes.

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