# Caprolactam: Movement

Heated tanks or bags of flakes from China and Russia

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/caprolactam/movement/

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 293371
 World exports $1.09 bn 25 reporting exporters · about 636k t Largest exporter Belgium 44.6% of world exports Largest importer Germany 37.9% of world imports India imports $86.1 m
exports $309k #4 importer · #11 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 293371: 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 293371: largest exporters

| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Belgium** | 44.6% | $484.4 m | 269k |
| **China** | 27.3% | $296.9 m | 200k |
| **Netherlands** | 9.4% | $102.0 m | 53k |
| **United States** | 4.4% | $47.3 m | 25k |
| **Thailand** | 4.3% | $47.2 m | 28k |
| **Japan** | 3.6% | $39.5 m | 26k |
| **Czechia** | 3% | $32.4 m | 17k |
| **Spain** | 2.2% | $23.8 m | 11k |

#### HS 293371: largest importers

| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Germany** | 37.9% | $488.5 m | 267k |
| **China** | 17.6% | $227.2 m | 147k |
| **Italy** | 12.9% | $165.8 m | 88k |
| **India** | 6.7% | $86.1 m | 50k |
| **Slovenia** | 3.9% | $50.1 m | 24k |
| **Switzerland** | 3.7% | $47.8 m | 25k |
| **Canada** | 2.5% | $32.5 m | 15k |
| **South Korea** | 2.1% | $27.2 m | – |

 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 15-20% of output crosses borders (indicative) |  |  |
| **How it moves** | Molten (melting point about 69 C) in heated ISO tanks or tankers, or as solid flakes in bags. Often made next to nylon 6 polymerisation. |  |  |
| **Routes and chokepoints** | China and Russia to India, Turkey and Southeast Asia; Thailand to South Asia. |  |  |
| **India** | Imports rose sharply while domestic demand fell, with landed prices below GSFC's cost (Indian Chemical News, Oct 2026). HS 293371 volumes were not reached. |  |  |
| **Handling in transit** | Not regulated as dangerous goods for transport (indicative); molten product requires heated containers. |  |  |

## Other sections

- [Summary](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/caprolactam/index.md)
- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/caprolactam/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/caprolactam/correlation/index.md)
- [Production route](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/caprolactam/routes/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/caprolactam/production/index.md)
- [Feedstocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/caprolactam/feedstocks/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/caprolactam/cycles/index.md)
- [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/caprolactam/trading/index.md)
- [Regulation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/caprolactam/regulation/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/caprolactam/characteristics/index.md)
- [Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/caprolactam/emissions/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/caprolactam/links/index.md)