US imports of caustic soda fell by 28% in April from the previous month

According to foreign reports, mainly due to the Japanese earthquake and tsunami on March 11th, the amount of imported caustic soda in the United States in April fell by 28% to 132,643 tons, a year-on-year drop of 10%. Goods imported from Japan decreased by 39% to 8,999 tons.

In the first week of March, the price of caustic soda in Asia was approximately US$375/dmt (CFR South East Asia), while in the first week of April, the price rose to US$485/dmt (CFR South East Asia).

Rising prices in Asia have led to dependence on imported West Coast buyers from the United States to start looking for supplies from the United States Gulf of Mexico. In addition, the amount of caustic soda that China and Taiwan exported to the United States decreased by 56% and 33% respectively.