Chemical

New customs figures show China's hydrogen chloride imports and exports surged in November 2025, highlighting strong trade growth across key Asian and international markets.

The EU's 2025 R&D Scoreboard shows 25 Chinese chemical companies in the top 2,000 global investors, with BASF, Syngenta, and Codiva leading industry innovation.

From January to November 2025, China's ethylene imports jumped 32.08% while exports fell 79.04%, with South Korea, Japan, and Oman remaining the main supply sources.

China's titanium dioxide production fell for the first time in over 20 years in 2025, reflecting excess capacity, industry consolidation, and weaker utilisation across the sector.

China's November 2025 data shows sharp contrasts in dichloromethane and trichloromethane trade, with striking shifts in imports, exports, and pricing.

OPEC+ has agreed to keep oil production steady through March 2026, signaling a cautious approach as seasonal factors and market balance remain in focus.

ExxonMobil's planned shutdown of a major Scottish ethylene plant highlights the mounting pressures reshaping Europe's energy and petrochemical industry.

Occidental Petroleum has closed its US$9.7 billion OxyChem deal, a move set to reshape its balance sheet and the U.S. chemicals landscape.

China's caustic soda exports surged 36.7% year on year in January–November 2025, driven by strong growth in liquid shipments, while imports fell sharply and export flows concentrated in key Asia-Pacific markets.

China's PVC pure powder trade in November 2025 showed sharply higher imports month on month and strong export growth year on year, with India consolidating its position as the top overseas market.

China's 2025 energy and chemical export landscape is marked by an unprecedented fertiliser export surge driven by policy shifts and global demand, even as petrol and diesel shipments retreat under weak markets and quota constraints.

Global vinyl chloride markets are diverging, with steady exports in the US and Europe contrasting sharply with weakening demand and falling prices across Asia.

China's industrial profits remained broadly stable in January–November, with solid manufacturing growth cushioning sharp declines in mining, even as November profits fell markedly year-on-year.

China's Shaanxi Coal Group Yulin Chemical is steadily advancing its 15 million-tonne coal conversion megaproject, with multiple key units entering the installation phase and laying the foundation for a high-end, integrated coal chemical industry chain.

China's API industry is turning the corner, shifting from price wars to value-led growth amid deep structural upgrading.

Driven by the 15th Five-Year Plan, China's chemical industry aims to lift ethylene capacity to 90 million tonnes, secure 42% of global output and raise high-end material self-sufficiency to 85%.

By 2025, China's offshore oil output is projected to reach 68 million tonnes — accounting for about 80% of national production growth — underpinned by deepwater discoveries, offshore gas and LNG expansion, and accelerating offshore wind development.

BASF's largest overseas investment has reached a major milestone with the successful commissioning of its 500,000-tonne-per-year polyethylene plant at the Guangdong Integrated Base, significantly strengthening high-end polyolefin supply in South China.

CNOOC has announced the discovery of the Qinhuangdao 29-6 oilfield in the Bohai Sea, marking the seventh consecutive billion-ton oil and gas find since 2019 in China's largest crude oil production base.

China's Bohai Oilfield has reached a historic production milestone through capacity expansion and technological innovation, solidifying its role as the backbone of China's offshore oil and gas supply and national energy security.

China has successfully commissioned its first independently developed green and low-carbon ethylene electrolysis furnace sidestream unit, marking a major technological breakthrough for CNPC in electric cracking and near-zero-carbon ethylene production.

ACC expects US chemical growth to stay muted through 2026, with recovery delayed and AI-driven demand emerging as the key bright spot.

China's chemical API industry is at a pivotal turning point, where global leadership built on scale is giving way to an innovation-driven upgrade that will redefine its role in the global pharmaceutical supply chain.

China Shenhua's hundred-billion-yuan restructuring, alongside XRG's landmark acquisition, underscores how China is helping drive a new, scale-driven phase of consolidation that is reshaping the global chemical industry.

As ethylene capacity approaches 90 million tonnes, China's petrochemical industry faces a prolonged adjustment, with a new supply–demand balance expected to emerge only after 2030.

Mitsui Chemicals' 100,000-tonne MDI expansion in South Korea highlights a deepening capacity race among global chemical giants, as Asian producers accelerate growth amid weakening European supply.

China has started operations at its first commercial-scale bio-methanol plant, supplying green methanol for international maritime bunkering to support the shipping sector's low-carbon transition.

China's polyester industry continues steady growth through 2025, driven by rising capacity, strong exports and stable downstream demand.

China's ethylene production maintained solid growth in October 2025, with output rising 11.7% year on year and cumulative January–October production up 10.7%, led by Jiangsu and Guangdong.

China's polyether market is entering a phase of fluctuating weakness in mid to late December, as seasonal demand softness and rising supply outweigh limited early-month price gains.