S Korea Feb petrochem exports fall 6.8%, polymer shipments slump

Nurluqman Suratman

24-Mar-2014

By Nurluqman Suratman

S Korea Feb petrochem exports fall 6.8%, polymer shipments slumpSINGAPORE (ICIS)–South Korea’s petrochemical exports in February fell by 6.8% year on year, weighed by double-digit declines in shipments of key polymer products, industry data showed on Monday.

Overseas shipments of petroleum products, meanwhile, dipped by 15.4%, the country’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) said in its monthly report, without disclosing further details.

South Korea’s overall exports rose by 1.6% year on year to $43bn in February, while imports grew at a faster pace of 4%, according to the ministry.

The country’s trade surplus last month declined 50.6% year on year to $926m, it said.

Export volumes of most petrochemical products fell in February compared with the same period last year, with shipments of ethylene falling by 26.7% and polyethylene (PE) down by 21.8%, according to the Korea International Trade Association (KITA). (Please see table below)

South Korea’s exports of linear low density PE (LLDPE) slipped by 0.9% and polypropylene (PP) shipments fell by 11.7%.

Exports of low density PE (LDPE), on the other hand, bucked the trend to post a 15.2% increase, according to official data.

“The growth of Korea’s exports was slower than we had anticipated due to the slow economic recovery of advanced nations and the emerging market crisis,” MOTIE said in a statement.

“In particular, ship orders have been repeatedly delayed upon request, stalling economic recovery,” the ministry said.

“Industry insiders predict that exports will pick up from the second quarter of this year,” it added.

EXPORTS (in metric tonnes)
PRODUCT  Mar-14 Mar-13 YoY Difference % Change YoY

Ethylene

59,451

81,084

21,633.00

26.68

Benzene

133,516

124,300

9,216.00

7.41

Polypropylene

87,706

99,323

11,617.00

11.7

Polyethylene

88,222

112,822

24,600.00

21.8

LLDPE

39,613

39,967

354

0.89

LDPE

29,083

25,241

3,842.00

15.22

Toluene

110,505

105,492

5,013.00

4.75

Propylene

104,625

79,468

25,157.00

31.66

Butadiene Rubber

29,476

31,816

2,340.00

7.35

Buta-1,3-diene and isoprene

23,524

22,068

1,456.00

6.6

Styrene

96,274

99,795

3,521.00

3.53

Paraxylene

196,005

282,851

86,846.00

30.7

PET

66,308

53,599

12,709.00

23.71

Mixed Xylene Isomers

22,224

41,144

18,920.00

45.98

PTA

229,175

229,690

515

0.22

MMA

8,996

1,841

7,155.00

388.65

PMMA

10,080

10,271

191

1.86

Orthoxylene

4,849

5,821

972

16.7

Expansible polystyrene

11,481

12,835

1,354.00

10.55

Acrylonitrile

26,854

14,337

12,517.00

87.31

Polycarbonate

40,678

36,293

4,385.00

12.08

Ethyl Acetate

36

46

10

21.74

Vinyl Acetate Monomer

1,922

2,461

539

21.9

Paraffin Wax (slack wax and scale wax)

359

857

498

58.11

P-wax with less than 0.75%

33

33

0

0

PVC (not mixed with other substances)

48,560

59,445

10,885.00

18.31

PVC (non-plasticised)

18

22

4

18.18

PVC (plasticised)

2,166

1,870

296

15.83

PVC (In aqueous dispersion)

47

33

14

42.42

*red indicates a negative number

Source: KITA

Read John Richardson and Malini Hariharan’s blog – Asian Chemical Connections

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