Import and export of PIY in 2021

According to the latest data from China customs, imports of PIY totaled 46.5kt in 2021, up 153.3% on the year, hitting historic new high, and exports approached 562.8kt, a year-on-year increase of 30.7%. Skyrocketing imports of PIY were mainly because Hailide’s PIY unit started operation in Aug 2021 in Vietnam. Exports of PIY stopped falling and saw big increment as overseas demand improved with eased pandemic worldwide and domestic companies were active in exploring export with high growth rate of domestic production.

Monthly imports of PIY were mainly higher than the same period of last year, excluding Oct, especially in Q2 with big growth rate. Monthly exports of PIY were much higher over last year, especially in Q2, as the exports greatly shrank in the same period of last year amid the spread of pandemic.

Imports of PIY started rising obviously from Sep 2020. Imports from Vietnam apparently increased since Sep 2020 while those from other nations changed little, which was consistent with the startup of Hailide’s new unit in Vietnam.

The top 10 exports destinations of PIY in 2021 were largely in line with those in 2020, totally accounting for around 61% in 2020-2021. US remained the biggest export market and its market share dropped to 13% in 2021 from 14% in 2020. South Korea ranked the second place, with market share down by 1 percentage point to 8% in 2021. The proportion of Vietnam reduced by 1 percentage points on the year in 2021 while that of India, Russia and Brazil slightly climbed up on annual basis. Exports of PIY were mainly to developed nations in Europe and US as automobile and infrastructure field was major application fields of PIY, while exports to developing countries like India, Russia and Brazil were scarce.

In general, imports and exports of PIY both hit new high in 2021, with big y-o-y increase. Soaring imports were mainly boosted by the launch of new unit from Hailide in Vietnam. Import origins of PIY changed substantially in 2021 compared with last year. Jumping exports were mainly benefited from recovering demand from outside China after the spread of pandemic worldwide became alleviated. The export destinations of PIY were basically unchanged in 2021 over last year.

As for the market outlook in 2022, in the future, Vietnam Hailide will gradually pass overseas certification and export more PIY to other nations, while exports to China will reduce. Therefore, imports of PIY are expected to see negative growth in 2022 compared with 2021, which has been incarnated in the import data of PIY in the fourth quarter of 2021. Imports of PIY are expected to see a negative growth in 2022 compared with 2021. As for export, domestic enterprises will continue developing export markets actively with supply glut in China. Overseas demand may improve further with eased pandemic. Meanwhile, supply of PIY is expected to recover outside China. Coupled with high sea freight, exports of PIY are anticipated to keep rising on the year in 2022 but the growth rate is anticipated to apparently head south.