China’s imports of Indian PVC hit a record high in June, market sources told SSESSMENTS.COM. China received 27,207 tons of PVC from India last month, compared to 5,174 tons in May. PVC demand plunged in India during a nationwide lockdown in June which prompted cancellations of PVC deliveries to the country. Hence, suppliers redirected shipments to China to clear excess supplies.
For August arrival, key Asian PVC suppliers increased their offers to India to $860/ton, compared to $840/ton for July and $740/ton for June. These suppliers offered no volume discount due to limited allocation.
Looking ahead, China’s imports of Indian PVC are expected to slow as Indian businesses began to resume after the nationwide lockdown ended in early June. According to the National Bureau of Statistics of China, the country’s total PVC imports for June also touched an all-time high of 172,941 tons, increasing from 92,254 tons in the prior month. China’s PVC imports from the US rose from 5,231 tons in May to a three-month high of 23,672 tons in June.
As SSESSMENTS.COM noted, India is the world’s largest PVC importer. India’s PVC demand is approximately 3 million tons/year, while the domestic capacity is only around 1.45 million tons/year, coming from Reliance, Chemplast, Finolex, DCW Ltd and DCM Shriram. As such, the country needs to import by around 50% to cater to domestic demand. The primary demand for PVC in India comes from the agricultural and construction sector, with pipes and fittings industry as the major contributor accounting about 70% of total demand.
