Butadiene: Movement

China's imports climb even as it builds

China's imports climb even as it builds What this tab covers How it moves between countries: share of output traded, physical form and transport, the largest exporters and importers, main routes, India's trade, and handling rules in transit.

Trade in 2024 UN Comtrade, HS 290124

World exports $2.34 bn 27 reporting exporters · about 2.09 m t Largest exporter South Korea 17.9% of world exports Largest importer China 25.1% of world imports India imports $97k
exports $198.2 m #27 importer · #4 exporter

Where it is exported from and imported to, 2024

Chart: World map of the largest trade flows

Exporter (size = share of world exports) Importer (share of world imports) Shipping chokepoint UN Comtrade 2024, HS 290124: shares of reported world exports and imports by value. Country-to-country route lines are not available for this commodity yet. Hover a circle for values.

HS 290124: largest exporters

Country	Share	Value (US$)	Tonnes
South Korea	17.9%	$419.3 m	311k
Netherlands	11.1%	$259.6 m	293k
Germany	9.9%	$232.4 m	234k
India	8.5%	$198.2 m	168k
Singapore	8.4%	$197.0 m	149k
China	8.1%	$188.4 m	137k
Malaysia	8%	$187.3 m	241k
Brazil	6.1%	$142.0 m	150k

HS 290124: largest importers

Country	Share	Value (US$)	Tonnes
China	25.1%	$607.8 m	431k
South Korea	20.5%	$497.1 m	–
France	9%	$218.1 m	224k
Malaysia	8.3%	$200.7 m	146k
United States	7.5%	$180.4 m	–
Indonesia	4.3%	$104.1 m	71k
Germany	4.3%	$102.9 m	110k
Poland	4.2%	$102.7 m	107k

UN Comtrade 2024, reported by each country (exports by exporters, imports by importers), all partners. Some countries (for example Russia and Iran) do not report, so their shares are missing. HS codes can be broader than the tile: check the code before reading a share as the whole market.

How it moves

Measure	Figure
Share traded	about 15% of output (indicative: about 2-2.5 Mt traded)
How it moves	Pressurised or semi-refrigerated liquid in LPG-type ships and ISO tanks, inhibited with TBC to prevent polymerisation. Often consumed near crackers.
Routes and chokepoints	Europe and US to Asia; Korea and Japan to China. China levies an extra 10% tax on US products.
India	India trades modest volumes both ways under HS 290124; values not retrieved.
Handling in transit	UN1010 butadienes, stabilised, Class 2.1 flammable gas; must carry inhibitor; peroxide formation risk.