US exports of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) fell in June, driven by decreases in product moving to Latin America as producers deal with tariff uncertainty and anti-dumping duties (ADDs).
US global exports of PVC fell by 3pc in June from the prior month, dropping to 263,888 metric tonnes (t), according to US Census Bureau data collected by Global Trade Tracker. Exports to Canada, consistently the biggest consumer of US PVC, fell 13.8pc to 46,452t.
Exports to India rose 113pc to 6,190t in June. India's Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) protocol, initially set to go into effect on 24 June, were delayed until the end of the year. The protocol requires producers to be audited and approved by Indian officials to be granted the right to sell PVC in India.
Only one US PVC plant was approved by June, according to market sources, with several others at various points of the application process.
It remains to be seen, however, if India retaliates to increased US tariffs, which President Donald Trump raised to 25pc from 10pc in a 31 July executive order.
Exports to Middle Eastern and north African countries grew in June, with exports to Saudi Arabia rising by 31.4pc to 7,354t and shipments to Egypt rising 42.6pc to 6,563t from May. Exports to Turkey also rose, climbing 38.1pc monthly to 27,990t. Exports to Turkey in June were up 58.8pc from the same time a year prior, and exports to Saudi Arabia rose 58pc in the same period, showing increased shipments to the region after multiple Latin American countries put ADDs on US PVC this year.
US exports to Mexico fell 7pc to 27,931t in June from the prior month. Mexico's ministry of economy launched an anti-dumping probe on 28 April on US suspension-grade PVC. Exports to Brazil, which also raised anti-dumping duties against US PVC in recent months, fell to 4,243t in June, down from 18,562t in March, before the anti-dumping duties were implemented.
Multiple producers have expressed difficulties in finding outlets for US PVC in the face of ADDs and feel the export market may slow in coming months as messaging regarding proposed tariffs remains unstable.
