# Phenol and acetone: Movement

Why phenol travels molten in heated tankers

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/phenol/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 290711
 World exports $1.32 bn 50 reporting exporters · about 861k t Largest exporter United States 17.2% of world exports Largest importer Netherlands 15.9% of world imports India imports $245.7 m
exports $26.9 m #3 importer · #12 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 290711: 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 290711: largest exporters

| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **United States** | 17.2% | $227.9 m | 190k |
| **Thailand** | 15% | $198.9 m | – |
| **Saudi Arabia** | 14.7% | $194.9 m | 198k |
| **Finland** | 12.5% | $165.4 m | 142k |
| **Singapore** | 9.5% | $126.0 m | 128k |
| **South Korea** | 7.2% | $95.7 m | 96k |
| **China** | 6.2% | $82.7 m | – |
| **Japan** | 3.6% | $47.1 m | 53k |

#### HS 290711: largest importers

| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Netherlands** | 15.9% | $340.4 m | – |
| **Germany** | 13.7% | $293.4 m | 227k |
| **India** | 11.5% | $245.7 m | 240k |
| **China** | 10.8% | $231.1 m | – |
| **Belgium** | 7.3% | $155.6 m | – |
| **Poland** | 6.8% | $145.7 m | 110k |
| **South Korea** | 5.3% | $113.5 m | – |
| **Canada** | 3.7% | $78.8 m | 56k |

#### HS 291411: largest exporters

| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Germany** | 16.2% | $193.3 m | 198k |
| **Thailand** | 14.6% | $174.4 m | – |
| **Netherlands** | 10.2% | $121.9 m | 118k |
| **Saudi Arabia** | 9.9% | $118.3 m | 166k |
| **South Korea** | 9.3% | $111.4 m | 133k |
| **Singapore** | 8.7% | $103.4 m | 123k |
| **Finland** | 8.5% | $101.8 m | 101k |
| **United States** | 6.9% | $82.2 m | 63k |

#### HS 291411: largest importers

| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **China** | 17.4% | $264.2 m | 323k |
| **United States** | 11.8% | $178.0 m | 163k |
| **India** | 9.6% | $145.7 m | – |
| **Germany** | 9.6% | $144.7 m | 153k |
| **Netherlands** | 9% | $135.6 m | 159k |
| **Italy** | 4.8% | $73.1 m | 62k |
| **Belgium** | 4.2% | $63.8 m | 65k |
| **Switzerland** | 3.9% | $59.1 m | 58k |

 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 phenol output crosses borders (indicative) |  |  |
| **How it moves** | Phenol ships molten (melting point 41 C) in heated, stainless or coated tankers and ISO tanks; acetone ships as a flammable liquid in chemical tankers. |  |  |
| **Routes and chokepoints** | Singapore and Thailand to India (Kandla); Korea and Taiwan to China; US to Europe and India. |  |  |
| **India** | Kandla is the main import terminal; inventories were about 27,300 t in mid-December 2025 (OPIS). Annual import volumes under HS 290711 and 291411 were not reached. |  |  |
| **Handling in transit** | Phenol: UN1671 (solid) or UN2312 (molten), Class 6.1 toxic. Acetone: UN1090, Class 3, packing group II. |  |  |

## Other sections

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