Aug China PP Imports Inch Higher on More Cargo Arrivals
Highlights: SCI Plastic leads you into polypropylene (PP) import data by origin, trade mode and import cost, to clearly present China’s PP import market change in August 2023.
1. China PP Import Volume Trend
China’s PP import volume was 216.02kt, which increased by 2.95% M-O-M but declined by 4.59% Y-O-Y in August 2023. The exchange rate of USD against RMB remained high, and the import arbitrage window was narrow. Some cargoes dealt before arrived at China’s ports successively. Overseas suppliers preferred to sell goods to other regions given more profits, so their quotation numbers to China rose limitedly. China’s PP import volume saw a brief uptick accordingly.
2. Aug 2023 China PP Import Data by Origin
China’s PP import volume rose by around 6.2kt M-O-M in August 2023. The top ten import origins changed somewhat. Oman entered the top ten ranks, while Vietnam was out of the ranks. South Korea still ranked first with 45.1kt of PP exports to China, and this volume realized an M-O-M increase. China’s PP import volume from the U.S. was 34.4kt, ranking second. That from Singapore increased a lot to 21.9kt or so, ranking third, and that from Saudi Arabia reached 19.7kt with a lot of cargoes arriving, ranking fourth. The rank of Japan slid to five. Import volume from Taiwan of China, Thailand, Malaysia and Russia inched up in August.
3. Aug 2023 China PP Import Data by Trade Mode
In August, China’s PP import volume via general trade mode was about 143.1kt and took up 66% of the total, ranking first and down 1% M-O-M. The import volume via processing trade with imported materials was about 41.4kt, ranking second. That occupied 19% of total imports, keeping flat M-O-M. Besides, the import volume of stored and transit goods in bonded warehouses was about 27.0kt and occupied around 13% of the total, which rose by 1% M-O-M. The import volume based on the mode of processing trade with provided materials stayed flat M-O-M. In summary, general trade was still the prominent trade mode. Most of the players conducted general trade mode, as the import arbitrage window was narrow, and downstream processors had poor profit gains. The import volume based on the trade modes of processing trade with imported materials and processing trade with provided materials was sparse because of higher costs and improved macro environment in overseas markets. The import volume based on the trade mode of stored and transit goods in bonded warehouses accounted for a small proportion and changed narrowly.
4. Aug 2023 China PP Import Data by Import Cost
The overall import cost saw a brief increment in August 2023 and mainly hovered around $800-1,200/mt. Therein, imports with import costs of $800/mt ranked first, and major origins were Japan, Malaysia and Russia. Imports with costs of $800-900/mt ranked second, and origins were mainly the U.A.E., Saudi Arabia and Oman. Imports with costs of $1,100-1,200/mt took the third place, and origins were mainly South Korea, Taiwan of China and Singapore. Imports with costs of $1,100-1,200/mt ranked fourth, and main origins were Singapore, U.A.E. and Thailand. Generally, the increase in feedstock prices made the overall PP production costs rise, and the overall offers for PP gained ground slightly, driving the import cost. But the sales pressure mounted up correspondingly. Market players were wary about operating with limited acceptance of high-priced feedstock, resulting in a mediocre trading atmosphere.
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