The U.S. Emerges as the Largest Importer of Salt and Pure Sodium Chloride in 2018

IndexBox has just published a new report: 'World - Salt - Market Analysis, Forecast, Size, Trends and Insights'. Here is a summary of the report's key findings.

The global salt market revenue amounted to $27.4B in 2018, growing by 11% against the previous year. This figure reflects the total revenues of producers and importers (excluding logistics costs, retail marketing costs, and retailers' margins, which will be included in the final consumer price). The market value increased at an average annual rate of +3.7% over the period from 2008 to 2018; the trend pattern indicated some noticeable fluctuations being recorded throughout the analyzed period. The pace of growth was the most pronounced in 2010, with an increase of 24% against the previous year. Global salt consumption peaked in 2018, and is likely to see steady growth in the near future.

Production 2007-2018

In 2018, approx. 321M tonnes of salt and pure sodium chloride were produced worldwide; picking up by 4.7% against the previous year. The total output volume increased at an average annual rate of +1.1% over the period from 2008 to 2018; the trend pattern remained consistent, with somewhat noticeable fluctuations over the period under review.

Exports 2007-2018

In 2018, the amount of salt and pure sodium chloride exported worldwide totaled 61M tonnes, picking up by 17% against the previous year. The total export volume increased at an average annual rate of +4.5% from 2008 to 2018; however, the trend pattern indicated some noticeable fluctuations being recorded over the period under review.

In value terms, salt exports stood at $3B (IndexBox estimates) in 2018.

Exports by Country

India (13M tonnes), Chile (9.3M tonnes) and Mexico (7.1M tonnes) represented roughly 48% of total exports of salt and pure sodium chloride in 2018. The Netherlands (4.5M tonnes) occupied a 7.4% share (based on tonnes) of total exports, which put it in second place, followed by Germany (6.3%) and Canada (5.6%). Tunisia (1.6M tonnes), Belarus (1.6M tonnes), Egypt (1.6M tonnes), China (1.4M tonnes), Spain (1.3M tonnes) and the U.S. (1M tonnes) occupied a relatively small share of total exports.

From 2008 to 2018, the most notable rate of growth in terms of exports, amongst the main exporting countries, was attained by India, while the other global leaders experienced more modest paces of growth.

In value terms, the largest salt markets worldwide were the Netherlands ($320M), Germany ($255M) and India ($227M), with a combined 27% share of global exports.

Export Prices by Country

The average salt export price stood at $49 per tonne in 2018, going up by 1.5% against the previous year. Overall, the salt export price continues to indicate a relatively flat trend pattern.

Export prices varied noticeably by the country of origin; the country with the highest export price was the U.S. ($179 per tonne), while Mexico ($17 per tonne) was amongst the lowest.

From 2008 to 2018, the most notable rate of growth in terms of export prices was attained by the U.S., while the other global leaders experienced more modest paces of growth.

Imports 2007-2018

Global imports stood at 68M tonnes in 2018, increasing by 11% against the previous year. The total import volume increased at an average annual rate of +2.4% over the period from 2008 to 2018; however, the trend pattern indicated some noticeable fluctuations being recorded over the period under review.

In value terms, salt imports totaled $3.7B (IndexBox estimates) in 2018.

Imports by Country

The U.S. represented the main importer of salt and pure sodium chloride in the world, with the volume of imports amounting to 18M tonnes, which was near 26% of total imports in 2018. China (7.2M tonnes) held a 11% share (based on tonnes) of total imports, which put it in second place, followed by Japan (7.1%), Taiwan, Chinese (4.7%) and Germany (4.5%). The following importers - Canada (2.9M tonnes), South Korea (2.2M tonnes), Belgium (1.5M tonnes), Norway (1.5M tonnes) and Russia (1.4M tonnes) - together made up 14% of total imports.

From 2008 to 2018, average annual rates of growth with regard to salt imports into the U.S. stood at +2.5%. At the same time, China (+13.9%), Canada (+7.7%), Germany (+3.4%), Norway (+3.4%), Russia (+3.0%) and Belgium (+2.9%) displayed positive paces of growth. Moreover, China emerged as the fastest growing importer in the world, with a CAGR of +13.9% from 2008-2018. By contrast, Taiwan, Chinese (-1.0%), South Korea (-3.4%) and Japan (-6.1%) illustrated a downward trend over the same period. While the share of Japan (6.2%) increased significantly in terms of the global imports from 2008-2018, the share of Canada (-2.2%), the U.S. (-5.8%) and China (-7.7%) displayed negative dynamics. The shares of the other countries remained relatively stable throughout the analyzed period.

In value terms, the U.S. ($735M) constitutes the largest market for imported salt and pure sodium chloride worldwide, comprising 20% of global imports. The second position in the ranking was occupied by Japan ($281M), with a 7.5% share of global imports. It was followed by Germany, with a 6.1% share.

Import Prices by Country

The average salt import price stood at $55 per tonne in 2018, waning by -10.9% against the previous year. In general, the salt import price continues to indicate a relatively flat trend pattern. The growth pace was the most rapid in 2016, an increase of 11% year-to-year. Over the period under review, the average import prices for salt and pure sodium chloride reached their peak figure at $64 per tonne in 2010; however, from 2011 to 2018, import prices failed to regain their momentum.

There were significant differences in the average import prices amongst the major importing countries. In 2018, the country with the highest import price was Belgium ($103 per tonne), while South Korea ($18 per tonne) was amongst the lowest.

From 2008 to 2018, the most notable rate of growth in terms of import prices was attained by Belgium, while the other global leaders experienced more modest paces of growth.

Source: IndexBox AI Platform