Stats: Türkiye’s cumulative polymer imports hit 3-year low in Jan-Sept

Total polymer imports of Türkiye stood at 4,536,000 tons in Q1-Q3 this year while the cumulative figure indicated a nearly 8% decrease year over year, as per ChemOrbis Stats Wizard data. The volume also pointed to the lowest level since 2021 when the country’s polymer imports for the first three quarters totaled 4.3 million tons.

Türkiye’s top 5 suppliers and their shares in total import quantity were Saudi Arabia (22%), the US (12%), South Korea (9%), Russia (7%) and Egypt (6%) in the first nine months of this year. Cumulative imports from these major sellers stood at about 985,000 tons, 530,000 tons, 410,000 tons, 325,000 tons and 270,000 tons, respectively.

Saudi Arabia’s market share was down by 2% from 24% in the same period of last year. However, the US lifted its share by 3% from 9% while this increase put it into the second spot on the top sellers list. South Korea’s share was down by 2% from last year’s 11%, putting the country to third spot compared to second in the same period of 2023. Russia’s market share dropped from the previous 10%, putting the nation to fourth spot in the list compared to second last year. Egypt maintained its share in overall polymer imports year on year, remaining the fifth biggest supplier.



PPH imports at a 5-year low, copolymer hits multi-year high

Saudi Arabia loses market share for both products

Türkiye imported 1,420,000 tons of homo-PP in the first three quarters of 2024, a 10% fall on the year. This total volume also pointed to the lowest figure since 2019 when imports stood at 1,395,000 tons for the product.

Looking at top suppliers, Saudi Arabia remained the largest seller with almost 490,000 tons although its market share was down from 39% to 34% year on year. This was in line with a prolonged logistic turmoil stemming from the Middle East conflict that disrupted deliveries through the Red Sea.

Russia stayed the second biggest source with a stable market share of 17%. Nonetheless, imports from the country were down by a visible 10% to slightly below 240,000 tons. Egypt dethroned South Korea and became the third major source of Türkiye, raising its market share from 8% to 12% and sales from 133,000 tons to 173,000 tons on the year.

PPH imports from South Korea were down from 170,000 tons to 147,000 tons in a yearly comparison, pushing its share from 11% to 10%. This put the country in the fourth spot in the list of main suppliers. In the meantime, the UAE was the fifth top seller despite a marginal drop in sales.

As for PP copolymer, the cumulative imports surpassed 360,000 tons in January-September. The figure indicated a gain of about 5% from the same period last year and the highest volume in recent years. The top three sellers remained Saudi Arabia, South Korea and Belgium. Yet, Saudi Arabia’s market share was down notably from 33% to 22%. Meanwhile, South Korea and Belgium lifted their shares by 3% and 2%, respectively to 19% and 12%.

PVC imports slump by 17% on year in Jan-Sept

In the first 9 months, PVC imports totaled slightly less than 620,000 tons, down by 17% from the same period last year, reflecting stagnant demand from local downstream markets. The US was the largest supplier for another year, with 143,000 tons and a 23% share, followed by France and Egypt, both with 12% shares and 72,000-74,000 tons of sales to Türkiye. The US lifted its market share by 3% year on year, while France achieved a marginal gain of 1%. Meanwhile, Egypt’s share was down by 3%.

PE tracks mixed paths depending on product

S. Arabia’s share down for most grades, US takes lion’s share for LLDPE

In the first three quarters, total LDPE imports were up by 2% to stand slightly above 280,000 tons from the same period of 2023. Saudi Arabia’s market share was down from 16% to 13% as logistic hurdles and turnarounds weighed on volumes. Yet, the country remained the number one supplier of Türkiye with 37,000 tons. Spain raised its share by a remarkable 7% to 13% with 36,000 tons of sales, which put it to the second spot in the list of main suppliers as compared to 8th last year. This was in line with demand woes that outweighed reduced run rates within the bloc which boosted exports out of the region to nearby Türkiye. Spain was followed by Iran (36,000 tons), whose share was up from 10% to 13%.

LLDPE imports were unchanged at approximately 560,000 tons in the first 3 quarters in a yearly comparison. Yet, the USA overtook Saudi Arabia’s place and became the number one supplier with more than 200,000 tons. The country lifted its share from 28% to 37%. Yet, Saudi Arabia’s share was down by 1% to 31% in the period, putting the nation to the second spot with nearly 175,000 tons of sales. Iran was third in the list with its share in total LLDPE market decreasing to 6% from 8%. The neighboring country’s exports to Türkiye broke below 40,000 tons.

Cumulative mLLDPE imports slumped by 18% on the year to slightly below the 100,000 mark in January-September. The USA remained the main supplier with 47,000 tons of sales, lifting its market share from 34% to 48%. The second biggest supplier was the UAE with 11,000 tons and an 11% share of the total import volume. The Netherlands lifted its share by 4% to 10% which put the country to third spot in the list, with more than 10,000 tons of sales. Last year’s second biggest source, Russia saw a steep fall of 25% in its market share, putting the country to seventh spot in the first nine months, as a side note.

Türkiye’s HDPE imports receded by almost 13% to slightly below 785,000 tons. Saudi Arabia was the largest source with 184,000 tons while the country achieved a 4% increase in its share at 24% from Q1-Q3 2023. It was followed by Iran (140,000 tons). The country’s share of the total import HDPE market was 18%, up from last year’s 16%. The USA was the third supplier with 98,000 tons and a 13% share. Last year, the country was the sixth largest supplier with 72,000 tons and an 8% share. Meanwhile, South Korea’s spot retreated from third to fifth in the list as the country faced a 5% drop in its share.

ABS and PS imports down 10-15% y-o-y, EPS records smaller loss

Total PS imports stood at almost 105,000 tons, indicating a 15% fall on the year. Belgium was the top supplier with 23,000 tons and a 22% share. Although the country sold 2,000 tons less PS to Türkiye than last year, its market share was up from 21% to 22%. With 20,000 tons and a 19% share, Iran was the second largest supplier as compared to fifth spot in 2023. In the meantime, South Korea witnessed a 3% decline in its share and 8,000 tons decrease in sales, putting the country to third spot in the list. The country was the top PS seller during the same period last year with 27,000 tons.

Türkiye imported a cumulative 118,000 tons of ABS in January-September, down from 131,000 tons in the same period last year. South Korea took the lion’s share for another year as it sustained a 58% share despite a 8,000 tons drop in sales. Saudi Arabia overtook Taiwan’s place and became the second largest ABS supplier (13,000 tons) as it raised its share from 9% to 13% this year. It was followed by Taiwan which faced a 4% decrease in its share and a 6,000 tons loss in sales.

EPS imports softened by 3.5% on the year to stand at 27,000 tons in the first three quarters. Iran remained the number one supplier with 8,000 tons, raising its share from 23% to 29% in total EPS imports. China was the second biggest seller as the country’s share jumped by 14% to 24% year over year. The country had been the fifth largest seller in the same period of 2023. Meanwhile, Austria sold 4,000 tons to Türkiye, while its share was down from 21% to 16%. This put the country to third spot.

Türkiye imports more PET in first nine months

In Q1-Q3, PET bottle imports spiked by 69% on the year. China was by far the largest supplier with 73,000 tons and a 79% share, up from last year’s 60%. It was followed by Malaysia (7%) and Nigeria (2%). Similarly, PET textile imports rose, albeit by a modest amount of 8% in the same period and neared the 70,000 tons mark. The biggest suppliers of Türkiye remained China, Malaysia and Indonesia. Malaysia achieved a 2% gain in its share, while China and Indonesia saw drops of 3% and 2%, respectively compared to the first 9 months of 2023.