# Fluorochemicals and refrigerants: Movement

How refrigerant cylinders flow from China and India

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/fluoro_intermediates/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 290349
 World exports $121.3 m 39 reporting exporters · about 6,052 t Largest exporter Japan 30.4% of world exports Largest importer South Korea 41.4% of world imports India imports $752k
exports $227k #21 importer · #13 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 290349: 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 290349: largest exporters

| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Japan** | 30.4% | $36.9 m | 1,732 |
| **United States** | 28.6% | $34.7 m | 1,269 |
| **China** | 19% | $23.1 m | 2,047 |
| **United Kingdom** | 8.6% | $10.4 m | 203 |
| **Germany** | 2.3% | $2.83 m | 57.9 |
| **Singapore** | 2.1% | $2.59 m | 281 |
| **Greece** | 2.1% | $2.57 m | 79.7 |
| **Hong Kong** | 1.3% | $1.60 m | 53.8 |

#### HS 290349: largest importers

| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **South Korea** | 41.4% | $55.2 m | 1,690 |
| **United States** | 9.5% | $12.7 m | 377 |
| **Singapore** | 7% | $9.34 m | 567 |
| **Belgium** | 6.5% | $8.59 m | 805 |
| **Germany** | 5.5% | $7.35 m | 182 |
| **Japan** | 5.3% | $7.10 m | 302 |
| **China** | 4.1% | $5.44 m | 177 |
| **France** | 2.6% | $3.50 m | 159 |

#### HS 290341: largest exporters

| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **China** | 38.7% | $9.11 m | 752 |
| **Japan** | 27.7% | $6.52 m | 326 |
| **United States** | 13.9% | $3.28 m | 198 |
| **South Korea** | 5.4% | $1.28 m | 52.9 |
| **Indonesia** | 3.4% | $792k | 146 |
| **France** | 2.7% | $642k | 9.05 |
| **Spain** | 1.7% | $410k | 8.62 |
| **Germany** | 1.7% | $402k | 4.67 |

#### HS 290341: largest importers

| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **South Korea** | 41.3% | $8.60 m | 669 |
| **China** | 11.2% | $2.34 m | 102 |
| **United States** | 8.9% | $1.85 m | 108 |
| **Germany** | 8.5% | $1.78 m | 28.1 |
| **Israel** | 4.7% | $973k | 44.1 |
| **Singapore** | 3.9% | $807k | 31.9 |
| **United Kingdom** | 3.3% | $683k | 20.4 |
| **Ireland** | 2.3% | $488k | 0.08 |

 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** | high for refrigerants: China exports a large share of its output (indicative). |  |  |
| **How it moves** | Liquefied gases in returnable cylinders, ton containers and ISO tanks; HF itself is rarely shipped far. |  |  |
| **Routes and chokepoints** | China to Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Latin America and Africa; India (Mundra, Hazira) to the US, Europe and the Middle East. |  |  |
| **India** | India exports HFCs and fluorospecialties and imports fluorspar. HS 290341: India imported $267 thousand (1.3% of world imports, rank 11); HS 290349: India imported $752 thousand (0.6% of world imports, rank 21) and exported $227 thousand (0.2% of world exports, rank 13) (UN Comtrade 2024). |  |  |
| **Handling in transit** | R32 UN3252 (class 2.1 flammable gas); R134a UN3159, R125 UN3220, R22 UN1018, R410A UN3163 (class 2.2); HFO-1234yf UN3161 (class 2.1). Cylinders are pressure vessels; illegal disposable cylinders are banned in the EU. |  |  |

## Other sections

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