China’s plastic supply is at risk of overflowing due to weak domestic demand, potentially posing a new trade challenge for the rest of the world.
Parts of the country’s sprawling petrochemical sector are operating at just half capacity as producers cut back. But with the industry still growing, that restraint is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain.
“This is another example — after steel and solar panels — where the structural imbalances in China are clearly spilling over into global markets,” said Charlie Vest, a New York-based associate director at Rhodium Group who researches U.S.-China relations and Chinese industrial policy.
