Domestic Supply Is Tight and Demand Is Robust China's Petroleum Coke Imports Increase in Volume and Price at the Beginning of 2025 [SMM Analysis]

SMM March 23 report:

According to customs data, China's petcoke imports in January 2025 were 1.2142 million mt, up 23.53% MoM and up 3.33% YoY; the estimated import price for January was $150.87/mt, up 10.25% MoM and up 3.02% YoY. In February 2025, China's petcoke imports were 1.1799 million mt, down 2.82% MoM and up 3.24% YoY; the estimated import price for February was $152.47/mt, up 1.06% MoM and down 8.35% YoY. The cumulative total imports of petcoke in China in 2025 were approximately 2.3941 million mt, up 3.28% YoY.

In terms of importing countries, the main sources of petcoke imports for China in 2025 were the US, Russia, Venezuela, and Saudi Arabia, with import volumes (import share) of 823,700 mt (34%), 344,500 mt (14%), 178,900 mt (7%), and 159,600 mt (7%) respectively.

Petcoke imports performed well in the first two months of 2025, with a slight increase in total exports compared to last year. Since Q1 2025, although petcoke imports have been increasing, domestic petcoke supply has decreased and downstream demand has significantly increased, leading to a continuous decline in port petcoke inventory. The short-term domestic shortage of petcoke is unlikely to change, and downstream demand remains robust, making the overall domestic market still somewhat dependent on petcoke imports. However, since Q1, overseas market petcoke prices have remained high, and domestic traders' sentiment towards taking over these prices has been somewhat restrained, but still moderate. In the short term, domestic petcoke supply will remain tight, and imports will stay at a high level to meet domestic demand.