China PE Imports to Remain Stable in Nov

SCI99

2022-12-02

China PE Imports to Remain Stable in Nov

According to GACC, China’s total import volume in October was 1,140.15kt, down 6.06% M-O-M while up 7.11% Y-O-Y. The total import volume from January to November was 11,108.11kt, up 7.11% Y-O-Y. The import volume declined notably in October compared with that in September. This was mainly because a large amount of low-priced imported PE resources arrived at ports intensively in September, impacting China’s PE market greatly. Therefore, the market price declined from a high level gradually, dampening the imports in October.

In October, China’s PE imports from Saudi Arabia, UAE, the U.S. and Thailand increased, especially Saudi Arabia and the U.S. Those from a certain country in the Middle East, Singapore, South Korea and a European country trended down. The PE imports from Saudi Arabia was 259.3kt in October, up 30.5kt or 13.33% M-O-M. Those from a certain country in the Middle East was 151.8kt, down 58.2kt or 27.71% M-O-M. Those from UAE was 149.4kt, up 6.1kt or 0.09% M-O-M.

As for the trade mode, China mainly imported PE via general trade, processing trade with imported materials and stored goods in bonded warehouses. Therein, the import volume via general trade was 960.7kt in October, taking up 84% of the total. That via processing trade with imported materials and stored goods in bonded warehouses was 90.7kt and 63.8kt, taking up 8% and 6% respectively.

Currently, the overseas demand is weak, and intensive arrivals of imported resources may reduce future imports. Meanwhile, the ethylene price in China’s market will keep falling amid increased supply, which will also impact the imports. In December, PetroChina Guangdong Petrochemical and Shandong Jinhai Chemical will put their newly added units into production. In addition, the demand for greenhouse film will continue to fall, while that for mulch film may improve gradually. The overall demand is expected to weaken in December considering the upcoming Spring Festival holiday. The import volume in November is estimated to remain stable from October, hovering at 1,150kt.

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