Türkiye’s July polymer imports hit highest in over 2 decades; PP, PVC and PE see solid gains

Total polymer imports neared 625,000 tons in July, indicating an increase of 39% on the month and %49 on the year. This volume pointed to the highest monthly figure since import statistics in 2002. Swiftly higher volumes in PP, PVC, and PE imports made a solid contribution to the numbers.

Total PP imports hit highest since March 2022

Türkiye’s cumulative PP imports, including PPH and PP copolymers, slightly exceeded 255,000 tons in July 2023. This pointed to a notable increase of more than 40% month-over-month, while the yearly gain was about 61%.

In fact, Turkish consumers and traders were involved in replenishment activities during a free-fall in PP prices back in mid-Q2, tempted by multi-year low import prices.

HOMO-PP
Homo-PP imports in July jumped by 41% on the month and 69% on the year to almost 210,000 tons. Saudi Arabia remained Türkiye’s top supplier with 76,026 tons, followed by Russia (51,623 tons), South Korea (20,531 tons), Egypt (15,840 tons), and Oman (9,609 tons).

PP COPOLYMER

For PP copolymer, Türkiye’s July imports spiked by 54,5% from June to 46,310 tons. The volume also increased by around 32% from July 2022. Saudi Arabia was Türkiye’s top supplier with 18,984 tons, followed by South Korea (5,977 tons) and the United Arab Emirates (4,045 tons).

PVC shows a swift jump of more than 90% from last year

Türkiye’s July PVC imports rose steeply by 65% on the month and spiked by 94% on the year to 93,470 tons. The US, France and South Korea were Türkiye’s top 3 suppliers with 15,599 tons, 13,143 tons and 12,147 tons, respectively.

Notably higher import volumes can be attributed to robust demand for PVC in May and June. Buoyant activity was driven by aggressive prices that pervaded the market until prices bottomed out right after the Eid al-Adha holiday in late June.

On top of talks about a nearing bottom in prices, expectations about a potential demand rise in the second half of the year amid construction and infrastructure projects in the quake zone also stimulated buying interest.

A profile manufacturer attributed climbing PVC imports to constantly limited supply on the side of the domestic producer, Petkim. “The company has been providing modest volumes over the past months amid tight VCM availability. This caused large consumers to meet their needs from the import market,” he noted.

PE imports reach 4-month high in July

Total July PE imports rose by nearly 29% on the month and neared 227,000 tons, the highest volume since March this year. The yearly comparison pointed to a larger gain of around 44%. Rising hopes for a pent-up demand for the post-election period bolstered resin demand from converters and traders in May and June amid more favourable FX rates at the time.

LDPE
In July, imports of LDPE posted a notable increase of 50% on the month and climbed by about 20% on the year to 30,250 tons. Saudi Arabia dethroned Azerbaijan and became the top exporter to Türkiye with 5,029 tons, followed by Azerbaijan (3,768 tons) and Israel (3,338 tons). The previous and steep drops in LDPE prices across the board caused jitters about a potential spike in early H2 of the year which enticed buying interest for July arrival cargos.

LLDPE
Imports for LLDPE climbed by 38% monthly and by around 40% on a yearly basis to 72,100 tons in July. Saudi Arabia remained Türkiye’s top supplier with 22,038 tons. It was followed by the USA (20,957 tons) and Qatar (5,114 tons).

Meanwhile, Türkiye’s July mLLDPE imports rose by 28% on the month to stand at 15,720 tons. They also increased by nearly 16% from July 2022. Russia overtook the USA’s place and became Türkiye’s top supplier with 5,940 tons, followed by the USA (3,873 tons) and the UAE (916 tons).

HDPE
Imports for HDPE in July were up by almost 19% on the month and showed a drastic gain of 61% on the year to stand at 108,780 tons. Saudi Arabia overtook Russia’s place and was the number one supplier with 22,001 tons, followed by Uzbekistan (15,601 tons) and Russia (13,980 tons).