Italy’s polymer imports march to record highs in H1

During the January-June period, the overall polymer imports reached more than 2.8 million tons in Italy. With an increase of nearly 5% over the same period of last year, the latest figures marked the highest first-half record since 2000, according to data from ChemOrbis Import Statistics.

Homo PP imports up, copolymers down marginally from H1 2018

Italy imported 6% more homo-PP in the first half of 2019 than last year. PP copolymer imports volumes, however, were slightly lower by around 2% over the same period of last year.

Imports of HDPE, LDPE inch up

HDPE imports during the January-June period indicated a year-on-year increase of around 5%. Imports of LDPE also inched up during the same period, tacking on a 4% rise over the first half of last year. Imports of both grades showed the strongest half-year performance in almost two decades, as data from ChemOrbis Import Statistics suggest.

LLDPE imports ease, metallocene jumps by a quarter in H1

Meanwhile, LLDPE imports were slightly down by 2% on a yearly basis, unlike other PE grades.

Metallocene-based LLDPE imports, however, became the best performer among the PE grades covered by ChemOrbis Imports Statistics, increasing by almost a quarter over the same period of last year .

HDPE, LLDPE imports from US notch an eye-catching and impactful increase

In the first half, the US entered the lists of top-10 suppliers and stood up to be the 7th largest exporter to Italy. Having imported only 9 thousand tons of HDPE in the full year of 2018, Italy bought more than 20 thousand tons of HDPE from the US only in the first quarter.

The increase in LLDPE imports is also notable. LLDPE imports from the US gained speed particularly after March with overall imports in H1 reaching the double of imports recorded over the course of 2018, which pushed the US to the 8th place in the top-10 supplier list so far this year.

Styrenic imports track different paths

In the first half of 2019, PS imports in Italy were 14% higher from a year ago period. On the other hand, ABS imports decreased by around 7% from last year and stood at their lowest levels since 2016.

PET bottle imports soar 16% y-o-y

PET imports soared by 16% year-on-year in the first 6 months of the year, marking the highest first-half total in 19 years, according to ChemOrbis data.

To track Italy’s imports by product, please click here and by country click here (For members only)