Europe imported 78,213 tonnes of maleic anhydride from outside the bloc in the twelve months to August 2026, 7.4% less than a year earlier, and paid EUR 72.2 million for it, 14.3% less. The average declared import unit value fell to EUR 923 per tonne. Under that softer headline sit two structural breaks. Imports rose 61.2% in calendar 2025, to 85,239 tonnes, after Huntsman closed its Moers plant and moved European supply to North America. And the 2026 book is now 71.0% Chinese, against 42.3% in 2024. The price ran from EUR 722 in 2026-01 to EUR 1,217 in 2026-08, a 68.6% move that tracks the Chinese domestic market rather than European demand.
Data updated: 2026-10-27
Latest 12 months: less volume, and a price that kept climbing
The table covers HS 291714, EU27 trade with partners outside the bloc, September 2025 to August 2026. It is the newest complete window in Eurostat Comext, refreshed on 16 October 2026. Values are declared customs values, so unit values carry freight and insurance on the import side and average over grades and packaging within each month.
| Month | Imports (t) | Import unit value (EUR/t) | Exports (t) | Export unit value (EUR/t) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-09 | 6,196 | 869 | 445 | 1,335 |
| 2025-10 | 4,618 | 848 | 544 | 1,055 |
| 2025-11 | 4,600 | 862 | 339 | 1,155 |
| 2025-12 | 3,839 | 763 | 778 | 990 |
| 2026-01 | 5,401 | 722 | 396 | 1,095 |
| 2026-02 | 4,968 | 786 | 441 | 1,273 |
| 2026-03 | 5,514 | 743 | 294 | 1,444 |
| 2026-04 | 6,062 | 739 | 385 | 1,799 |
| 2026-05 | 11,242 | 883 | 523 | 1,576 |
| 2026-06 | 12,441 | 1,096 | 280 | 1,783 |
| 2026-07 | 9,610 | 1,196 | 170 | 1,723 |
| 2026-08 | 3,721 | 1,217 | 748 | 1,331 |
Volume has no trend: monthly arrivals ran from 3,721 tonnes in 2026-08 to 12,441 tonnes in 2026-06, and the June and July spikes sit next to a December trough of 3,839 tonnes. Price does have a trend. Import unit values fell from EUR 869 in September 2025 to EUR 722 in January 2026, the lowest monthly reading in the window, then rose in every month except one to EUR 1,217 in August, 68.6% above the January floor. The last three months of the window averaged EUR 1,151 per tonne against EUR 861 in the first three, so the twelve-month average of EUR 923 is already behind the market.
Two caveats belong here rather than in a footnote. August is the newest month in a customs dataset and will be revised; its 3,721 tonnes is the low point of the window and coincides with the highest price, consistent with buyers waiting out a peak rather than a demand collapse. August intra-EU27 dispatches are not yet published, so no August production/import split is possible. The export book remains small: 5,344 tonnes at EUR 1,320 per tonne, a 43.1% premium to imports, which is what re-exported specialty parcels look like.
2025 was the year the import book changed shape
Annual data put the window in context. Extra-EU imports moved from 46,116 tonnes in 2020 to 85,239 in 2025, a 1.85-fold increase, and almost all of that growth came in one year: 61.2% in 2025 against a 13.8% fall in 2024. The import unit value moved the other way, from EUR 1,962 per tonne at the 2022 peak to EUR 950 in 2025.
| Year | Imports (t) | Import unit value (EUR/t) | Exports (t) | Export unit value (EUR/t) | Net balance (t) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 46,116 | 834 | 2,869 | 893 | −43,247 |
| 2021 | 66,097 | 1,515 | 3,599 | 1,709 | −62,498 |
| 2022 | 58,751 | 1,962 | 5,614 | 1,746 | −53,137 |
| 2023 | 61,329 | 1,147 | 4,676 | 1,126 | −56,653 |
| 2024 | 52,879 | 1,041 | 4,284 | 1,221 | −48,595 |
| 2025 | 85,239 | 950 | 6,106 | 1,294 | −79,133 |
The counterpart is on the intra-EU side. Dispatches between member states fell from 99,093 tonnes in 2024 to 87,715 tonnes in 2025, 11.5% lower, while extra-EU imports rose. Imports therefore went from 34.8% of all cross-border supply in 2024 to 49.3% in 2025, and 52.4% in January–August 2026. Total cross-border volume still rose 13.8% in 2025, which is what restocking ahead of a supply change looks like: the same customers bought more, from further away.
Three origins now carry 98.2% of the book
Concentration is the defining feature of this market. The top three origins supplied 98.2% of extra-EU imports in January–August 2026, against 87.5% in 2024, and the order inside that group has been rebuilt.
| Origin | 2024 (t) | 2025 (t) | Share 2025 | Unit value 2025 | Jan–Aug 2026 (t) | Share 2026 | Unit value 2026 | Volume vs Jan–Aug 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| China | 22,370 | 38,345 | 45.0% | 905 | 41,874 | 71.0% | 921 | +48.0% |
| United States | 11,558 | 20,745 | 24.3% | 904 | 9,212 | 15.6% | 1,024 | n/r |
| South Korea | 12,341 | 16,922 | 19.9% | 996 | 6,832 | 11.6% | 976 | n/r |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 4,847 | 8,305 | 9.7% | 1,165 | 614 | 1.0% | 1,116 | −91.4% |
| Taiwan | 717 | 409 | 0.5% | 996 | 0 | 0.0% | n/r | n/r |
| Malaysia | 302 | 280 | 0.3% | 1,231 | 0 | 0.0% | n/r | n/r |
| All other origins | 744 | 233 | 0.3% | 1,058 | 428 | 0.7% | 1,453 | +83.9% |
China is now both the largest origin and, marginally, the cheapest: 41,874 tonnes at EUR 921 per tonne, 3.0% below the all-origin average of EUR 949, after growing 48.0% year on year. The two origins that used to balance the book have halved. The United States shipped 9,212 tonnes, 45.8% less than in January–August 2025, at a unit value 7.9% above the average; South Korea shipped 6,832 tonnes, 46.3% less.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is the anomaly that needs naming. It supplied 8,305 tonnes in 2025 at EUR 1,165 per tonne, 17.6% above the 2026 average, then 614 tonnes in the first eight months of 2026, 91.4% lower. A series that jumps between 4,847 and 8,305 tonnes and then nearly stops is a handful of consignments through a trader’s books, not a production base. Treat the lane as a routing signal, not a supply option.
The supply side, outside Europe
| Reporter | 2023 (t) | 2024 (t) | 2025 (t) | Unit value 2025 (USD/t) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| China | 145,837 | 198,974 | 239,301 | 750 |
| Taiwan | 60,744 | 31,810 | n/r | n/r |
| Korea | 39,025 | 39,185 | 37,504 | 958 |
| United States | 44,580 | 47,347 | 47,309 | 1,361 |
| Malaysia | 25,346 | 22,658 | 7,190 | 1,076 |
| Japan | 788 | 1,116 | 990 | 2,207 |
| India | 364 | 360 | 238 | 1,220 |
| Türkiye | 1,030 | 1,240 | 1,217 | 688 |
Reported exports put the competitive gap in one currency. China shipped 239,301 tonnes in 2025 at USD 750 per tonne; the United States shipped 47,309 tonnes at USD 1,361 per tonne, a 81.5% gap that explains why the European origin mix moved. Two suppliers are shrinking out of the picture: Malaysia fell to 7,190 tonnes in 2025 from 22,658 in 2024, and Taiwan reported 31,810 tonnes for 2024 but no 2025 quantity for this code.
The price is set in Shandong, not in Rotterdam
The European series above is a customs average; the force behind it is visible in Chinese domestic quotes. Chinese maleic anhydride fell to a trough in early 2026 and then ran up through the summer on feedstock and supply, not on demand.
| Date of quote | Average (RMB/t) | Note in source | Report published |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-30 | 5,262.50 | Monthly average quote, +2.93% from 1 January | 2026-02-03 |
| 2026-06-01 | 7,887.50 | Monthly average quote at the peak of the June run-up | 2026-07-08 |
| 2026-06-30 | 7,250.00 | Monthly average quote, −8.08% over June | 2026-07-08 |
| 2026-07-31 | 8,600.00 | Monthly average quote, +18.62% over July | 2026-08-05 |
| 2026-08-31 | 8,200.00 | Monthly average quote, 4.65% below 1 August | 2026-09-04 |
| 2026-09-30 | 9,850.00 | Monthly average quote, +20.12% over September | 2026-10-13 |
The mechanism is in the monthly reviews rather than in the price line. In January, benzene in Shandong rose from RMB 5,268.67 to RMB 6,186.67 per tonne, a 17.42% increase, while n-butane sat near RMB 4,520 and Saudi contract propane for February was set USD 20 higher at USD 540 per tonne. June inverted the picture: maintenance tightened supply early in the month, units then restarted into an off-season, and the quote fell 8.08% to RMB 7,250 as downstream resin and coatings plants cut runs. July brought the tightness that mattered — SunSirs reported the integrated butane-route plant running but withholding sales, the benzene-route unit shut on cost, Shandong maintenance and new capacity below plan — and the quote rose 18.62% to RMB 8,600. September’s 20.12% rise to RMB 9,850 was attributed to n-butane cost plus regional maintenance.
The export side is large enough to set a European price. China’s customs administration reported July exports of 14,200 tonnes and 183,100 tonnes for January–July, against imports of 233 tonnes in the same seven months (figures as carried by ECHEMI). EU27 declared imports from China in January–July were 55,239 tonnes, 30.2% of that export total, so Europe is a large enough sink for Chinese material that Shandong quotations transmit into EU customs values. The lag is visible: the EU unit value bottomed at EUR 722 in January 2026, when Chinese quotes were at their low, and peaked at EUR 1,217 in August, after the July move to RMB 8,600. That is a transmission lag of roughly one to two months, and it is the single most useful timing fact in this dataset.
Analysis: what the August print does and does not say
Analysis. The August combination — lowest volume, highest unit value — is a demand response to price, not a supply failure. Chinese quotations then rose another 20.12% in September to RMB 9,850, the highest average of the year, so the European September and October prints should be higher again unless buyers stop buying altogether. A contract referencing a trailing twelve-month average is now buying below replacement: the window averages EUR 923, June–August EUR 1,151, and the Chinese quote behind both has moved twice since.
Outlook. Three things decide where this goes into 2027, and only one of them is European. First, the Chinese cost base: benzene and n-butane explain the 2026 swing, and the September rise was explicitly feedstock-led. Second, concentration — at 71.0% of the EU import book, one maintenance season in Shandong is a European supply event; the 4.65% August correction followed restarts, not policy. Third, European demand: unsaturated polyester resin is the largest outlet for this molecule, and the Chinese reviews describe downstream resin and coatings running at reduced rates. Wait-and-see demand and a rising cost base can coexist for a quarter or two, which is roughly how long the August price held before September broke it. None of this is a European supply recovery: with Moers closed, imports are structural, the only variable is origin mix, and that mix is moving the wrong way for anyone who values optionality.
What to do before the next tender
Index to the declared series, not to an assessment. The monthly import unit value above is public, reproducible and refreshed every month, which makes it defensible in a contract formula.
Treat EUR 722 per tonne as the floor of the last cycle, not a benchmark: it was struck in January 2026, before the feedstock move, and the three months to August averaged EUR 1,151. Qualify a second origin this winter — the US lane still exists at a 7.9% premium and roughly half its 2025 volume, and specification approval takes longer than a price cycle. And watch the Shandong quote monthly: a 20% move there reached EU declared values within one to two months twice in 2026, faster than any quarterly review.
The upstream and downstream molecules are covered on the same basis: maleic anhydride market data for the product page, 1,4-butanediol and BDO trade data for the derivative that absorbs Chinese anhydride, phthalic anhydride and the plasticiser anhydride complex for the competing acid, and benzene and benzene trade data for the feedstock.
Data limitations
Customs record only what crosses a border: material consumed where it is made never appears, and intra-EU27 rows measure dispatches between member states, which may be production, storage or trading positions.
HS 291714 does not separate flake, briquette and molten material, nor technical from polyester-grade, and a single large parcel moves a monthly average. The August import unit value of EUR 1,217 rests on 3,721 tonnes and will be revised.
China reported 2025 annual exports of this code but no 2026 monthly records in the Comtrade preview service, so China appears here only as an annual series plus the customs figures carried by ECHEMI. The Chinese price table is a domestic quotation, tax-inclusive, from a commercial price service; it is not an export price and is not converted into euros or compared arithmetically with the customs unit values. The August SunSirs note describes a 4.65% “increase” while its own figures fall from RMB 8,600 to RMB 8,200; only the levels are used here.
Bosnia and Herzegovina’s series is too lumpy to read as production. No subscription assessment, no interpolated series and no estimated figure is used anywhere in this article.
Data sources
- Eurostat Comext DS-045409, dataset page — https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/DS-045409/default/table (accessed 2026-10-27)
- Eurostat Comext API, EU27 monthly imports of HS 291714, 2024-01 to 2026-08 — https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/api/comext/dissemination/statistics/1.0/data/DS-045409?format=JSON&freq=M&reporter=EU27_2020&partner=EXT_EU27_2020&product=291714&flow=1&indicators=VALUE_IN_EUROS&indicators=QUANTITY_IN_100KG&sinceTimePeriod=2024-01 (accessed 2026-10-27)
- Eurostat Comext API, EU27 monthly exports of HS 291714, 2024-01 to 2026-08 — https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/api/comext/dissemination/statistics/1.0/data/DS-045409?format=JSON&freq=M&reporter=EU27_2020&partner=EXT_EU27_2020&product=291714&flow=2&indicators=VALUE_IN_EUROS&indicators=QUANTITY_IN_100KG&sinceTimePeriod=2024-01 (accessed 2026-10-27)
- Eurostat Comext API, EU27 annual extra-EU trade in HS 291714, 2020 to 2025 — https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/api/comext/dissemination/statistics/1.0/data/DS-045409?format=JSON&freq=A&reporter=EU27_2020&partner=EXT_EU27_2020&product=291714&flow=1&indicators=VALUE_IN_EUROS&indicators=QUANTITY_IN_100KG&sinceTimePeriod=2020 (accessed 2026-10-27)
- Eurostat Comext API, EU27 monthly imports of HS 291714 by origin, 2023-01 to 2026-08 — https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/api/comext/dissemination/statistics/1.0/data/DS-045409?format=JSON&freq=M&reporter=EU27_2020&product=291714&flow=1&indicators=VALUE_IN_EUROS&indicators=QUANTITY_IN_100KG&sinceTimePeriod=2023-01 (accessed 2026-10-27)
- UN Comtrade preview API, HS 291714 exports, China (156), 2025 — https://comtradeapi.un.org/public/v1/preview/C/A/HS?includeDesc=true&reporterCode=156&period=2025&flowCode=X&cmdCode=291714&partnerCode=0 (accessed 2026-10-27)
- UN Comtrade preview API, HS 291714 exports, United States (842), 2025 — https://comtradeapi.un.org/public/v1/preview/C/A/HS?includeDesc=true&reporterCode=842&period=2025&flowCode=X&cmdCode=291714&partnerCode=0 (accessed 2026-10-27)
- Huntsman, European Maleic Anhydride strategic review, 28 May 2025 — https://d1io3yog0oux5.cloudfront.net/_e8be635e99663d483f9c12d01000a907/huntsman/news/2025-05-28_Huntsman_Completes_European_Maleic_Anhydride_605.pdf (accessed 2026-10-27)
- SunSirs, maleic anhydride January review, 3 February 2026 — https://www.sunsirs.com/uk/detail_news-30313.html (accessed 2026-10-27)
- SunSirs, maleic anhydride June review, 8 July 2026 — https://www.sunsirs.com/uk/detail_news-34274.html (accessed 2026-10-27)
- SunSirs, maleic anhydride July review, 5 August 2026 — https://www.sunsirs.com/uk/detail_news-35009.html (accessed 2026-10-27)
- SunSirs, maleic anhydride August review, 4 September 2026 — https://www.sunsirs.com/uk/detail_news-35874.html (accessed 2026-10-27)
- SunSirs, maleic anhydride September review, 13 October 2026 — https://www.sunsirs.com/uk/detail_news-36763.html (accessed 2026-10-27)
- ECHEMI, China maleic anhydride outlook with customs volumes, 27 August 2026 — https://www.echemi.com/cms/3206794.html (accessed 2026-10-27)
If you need the full monthly matrix behind these tables — every origin by month, with volumes, values and unit values, plus the same cut for phthalic anhydride, fumaric acid and 1,4-butanediol — you can request a sample or a custom cut.