How is China's styrene capacity expansion reshaping the global trade map?

China's styrene capacity has surged to roughly 25 million tons/year, while domestic demand is only around 15-20 million tons—leaving at least 5 million tons of surplus. Zhejiang Petrochemical alone operates 1.8 million tons/year, making it the country's largest producer at nearly 9% of national capacity. Downstream consumers (ABS, PS, EPS) are running at only 61-78% utilization, with real estate and home appliances—the ultimate end markets—still weak. Historically China imported 283, 169, and 114 thousand tons in 2020-2022, but this import gap has now closed. The Middle East remains the top exporter, followed by North America, but China's self-sufficiency is redirecting those volumes toward Northeast Asia and India.