BEIJING—China's synthetic rubber exports surged 25 percent year-on-year in 2020 to reach 200,000 metric tons, according to the China Synthetic Rubber Industry Association.
Butadiene rubber had the largest export volume with more than 70,000 tons shipped. Styrene-butadiene rubber was second with almost 50,000 tons, more than double from a year ago.
China imported 1.4 million tons of synthetic rubber in 2020, up 11 percent on 2019, according to the industry association.
Styrene-butadiene rubber had the largest import volume, at nearly 400,000 tons, followed by butadiene rubber and butyl rubber, both close to 300,000 tons.
Last year China also imported 3.5 million tons of "mixed rubber," a mixture of natural rubber and synthetic rubber, up by a third from 2019, the association said.
Natural rubber imports in 2020 fell by 9 percent year on year, to 1.7 million tons, it said. Natural latex imports climbed 3 percent, to 570,000 tons. Synthetic latex imports shot up by 14 percent, to 213,000 tons.