Just as India's Olympic gold medal win yesterday poses no threat to China so does the news that India has become the second largest PTA importer in Asia.
Indian imports of this fibre intermediate have steadily grown to about 5,000 - 6,000 tonnes/month, up from the usual 2,000 tonnes/month, as a result of expansions in polyester capacities. New PTA capacity is being added with Mitsubishi Chemical's new 800,000 tonnes/year facility slated for start up next year. But demand growth is projected to be faster with PTA imports forecast to climb further.
However, India is nowhere close to displacing China as the largest PTA importer in the world. China imported about 6m tonnes last year and India is going to need many more years to catch up.