Methanol imports remain high

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High Import Levels of Methanol Author/Source: China Chemical Industry News Date: 2019-02-12 Clicks: 50 According to the latest statistics from **the customs, last year China imported 7.429 million tons of methanol. Although this figure represents an 8.8% decrease compared to 2017, it still remained at a high level of over 7 million tons. 　　Market analysts believe that the high level of methanol imports in our country is mainly due to the rise of emerging industries such as methanol-to-olefins, which result in a continuous increase in demand for methanol. Although domestic methanol production is also on the rise, it still cannot meet domestic demand, necessitating large-scale imports. At the same time, the vast majority of methanol produced abroad is made from natural gas, giving it a cost advantage, and it has many customers in China. 　　In terms of price, last year the average import price of methanol in China was 400.8 US dollars per ton, a 23.6% increase on a year-on-year basis; this marked the first time since 2010 that the average import price of methanol in China exceeded 400 US dollars per ton. The main reason is that the price of methanol is closely linked to oil prices. In the first few months of last year, international oil prices continued to rise, reaching a new high of 86 dollars per barrel in early October, **which drove up the price of methanol as well. 　　In terms of exports, last year China exported 222,000 tons of methanol, a 75% increase on a year-on-year basis; the average export price was 427.6 US dollars, representing a 14.2% increase compared to the previous year.