South Korea’s EPDM Total Exports Increased, and Shipments to China Rose YoY
Introduction: South Korea is one of the main exporters of EPDM, and the export volume increased during January-September 2025. China, India, and Southeast Asia remained the main export destinations, while exports to the U.S. and Europe decreased YoY.
According to data released by Korea Customs Service, from January to September 2025, South Korea’s EPDM export volume was 147.7kt, up 4.49% YoY. In September, the export volume of South Korea was 16,977.1mt, up 12% YoY. South Korea’s EPDM export volume increased significantly during this month, with exports mainly concentrated in China, India, and Southeast Asia. China’s EPDM demand remained stable, and September was the demand peak season. In addition, as the demand in Europe and Southeast Asia was limited, coupled with the stable USD price in China, South Korea increased the export volume to China.
Considering the export destinations, South Korea’s overall export destinations remained stable, though volumes to individual trade partners fluctuated. In terms of the trade partners, China remained the largest destination with a 55.7kt export volume, increasing by 23.69% YoY. India was the second destination with a 17.6kt export volume, increasing by 3.59% YoY. Exports to these two destinations accounted for 49.65% of South Korea’s total EPDM exports, nearly half of the export volume. So, China and India remained the main destinations for EPDM from South Korea.
In terms of trade volumes with Europe and the United States, South Korea’s EPDM exports to the U.S. totaled 8.5kt during January-September 2025, a 11.96% YoY decline, while exports to Germany fell by 11.81% during the same period. For Southeast Asia, exports to Thailand increased slightly by 0.38% YoY. Demand in Europe, the U.S., and Southeast Asia was weak, resulting in lower consumption of EPDM. Consequently, the suppliers in South Korea tend to be directed towards the Chinese market.
In January-September 2025, China’s domestic demand for EPDM showed a stable and relatively positive performance, with an overall satisfactory level of demand. Compared with the demands of other countries and regions, the overall demand in China showed an increase as the main trend. Automobile production and sales data reflect this end-market performance. From January to September 2025, China produced and sold 24.333 million and 24.363 million vehicles respectively, representing increases of 13.3% and 12.9% YoY. During the same period, automobile exports reached 4.95 million units, up 14.8% YoY. As the largest downstream sector of EPDM, the automobile industry continued to provide strong support to demand. Consequently, China remained the largest market for EPDM exports from South Korea, a major exporter of EPDM. In October, South Korea’s EPDM exports to China may remain high, mainly because the Chinese market is expected to perform buoyantly.
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