Blog - Soap And Detergents

U.S. imports of soap from China decreased by nearly 60% to $263M in 2021. The total value of U.S. soap purchases shank to $1.3B. 

In 2020, U.S. purchases abroad of soap and detergent increased by 49% y/y to 841K tonnes. In value terms, supplies soared from $1.2B to $1.7B.

France's lipstick suppliers benefit from the recovery of the global cosmetics market. From January to October 2021, exports of lip make-up preparations amounted to 5.9K tonnes, 11% more than in the same period of the previous year. In monetary terms, supplies abroad soared by 31% to $728M. China, the largest importer of lipsticks from France, ramped up purchases by 53% to 1.3K tonnes or 76% to $267M in value terms over the period under review. In January-October 2021, the average price of lip make-up preparations from France stood at $124 per kg, an 18%-increase compared to the figures of the same period in 2020. 

Germany is rapidly increasing its imports of candles and tapers. In the first seven months of 2021, Germany imported 84K tonnes of candles worth $230M. These figures exceed the last year’s 67K tonnes worth $163M imported over the same period. Poland remains the prime trade partner, supplying 58% of candle and taper volume imported to Germany in 2020. In physical terms, German purchases from Poland grew by +7.0% y-o-y last year. 

Global toothpaste imports reduced modestly to $4.1B in 2020. The U.S., Russia, and the UK constitute the largest dentifrice importers worldwide, while China leads global exports. China managed to increase its exports both in physical and value terms last year despite the drop in global trade. Russia remains the largest importer of toothpaste from China, accounting for nearly 14% of Chinese exports.

American exports of organic surface-active agent exports increased by +5.6% y-o-y to $3.5B in 2020. In physical terms, exports grew by +3.7% y-o-y to 1.4M tonnes. Canada remains the largest importer of organic surface-active agents from the U.S., comprising a 55% share of American exports. Mexico and China follow Canada in this ranking. Last year, all three countries recorded moderate growth in imports of the product from America. In 2020, the U.S. average price for organic surface-active agents exportgrew by +1.8% y-o-y to $2,584 per tonne.

In 2020, Chinese exports of soap in different forms increased twofold, reaching 779K tonnes in physical terms or $1.4B in value terms. The U.S. remains the largest importer of soap from China, accounting for 43% of the Chinese exports. Australia and Japan follow the U.S. with a combined 16%-share of total exports. Among the leading importers, the U.S. featured the most intensive growth of soap purchases from China. The average export price for soap from China stood at $1,772 per tonne in 2020.

The pandemic shifted the demand for soap and detergents. Amid the increased market competition and increased environmental concerns, soap manufacturers expand eco-friendly product lines. These shifts are to persist in the medium-to-long term even when the pandemic starts to wane.

The pandemic hit the cosmetic market hard due to the closures of retail outlets. The market responds by switching to personal care goods and developing innovative digital services. While China remains the global leader in terms of cosmetics consumption, Hong Kong and Singapore feature the highest cosmetics per capita consumption in the world.

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