SunSirs: China’s Titanium Dioxide Exports Exceed One Million Tons in First Half of 2026

Drawing on historical China Customs statistics and centering on the milestone of exports surpassing one million tons in the first half of 2026, this analysis compares import and export volumes, product categories (sulfate vs. chloride processes), and domestic-versus-foreign trade patterns over the past five years. It dissects the underlying trade dynamics—driven by global supply and demand, domestic industrial upgrading, and disparities in overseas energy costs—to illustrate the industry's transition from volume-based exports to high-end market expansion.

I. Key Customs Data for H1 2026: Semiannual Exports Break the One-Million-Ton Mark

From January to June 2026, China’s cumulative titanium dioxide exports reached 1.0684 million tons—a year-on-year increase of 16.56% and a record high for the period. This marks the first time the domestic industry’s semiannual export volume has crossed the one-million-ton threshold, signaling a phased recovery in trade patterns.

Divergence in process-based product structures is pronounced. Sulfate-process products—the traditional mainstay—saw cumulative exports of 807,600 tons (up 9.23% year-on-year), accounting for over 70% of total exports and serving as the bedrock of overseas sales. In contrast, high-end chloride-process products demonstrated explosive growth; exports totaled 260,800 tons (up 47.12% year-on-year)—a growth rate nearly five times that of the sulfate process—with their share of total exports rising from 19% in the same period last year to 24.4%, reflecting rapidly growing international recognition of these high-end products.

On the import side, the trend of year-over-year decline continued; cumulative imports for the first half of 2026 totaled just 25,900 tons, down 25.67% year-on-year. Specifically, imports of chloride-process products fell 22.19% to 15,900 tons, while sulfate-process imports dropped 30.39% to 10,300 tons. This highlights the accelerating pace of import substitution for high-end titanium dioxide, as domestic production capacity increasingly fills the supply gap for premium-grade products. II. Longitudinal Comparison of Total Annual Import and Export Volumes (2021–2025)

Cyclical Trends in Total Export Volume

2021: Global supply chains recovered; annual titanium dioxide exports reached 1.314 million tons (up 15% year-on-year), driven by a surge in demand for infrastructure and coatings in overseas markets.

2022: Rising shipping costs and regional geopolitical disruptions caused export growth to slow, though the annual volume remained high at over 1.3 million tons.

2023: Continued volume expansion in overseas emerging markets pushed annual exports to 1.465 million tons (up 12.5% ​​year-on-year).

2024: The imposition of trade tariffs and barriers by multiple countries significantly narrowed the growth rate of overseas sales; annual exports totaled approximately 1.5 million tons, a year-on-year increase of only 2.4%.

2025: The industry saw its first annual export decline in five years, with a total volume of 1.8169 million tons (down 4.46% year-on-year). A breakdown reveals that exports of sulfate-process products fell by 6.77% to 1.4505 million tons amidst intensifying overseas competition for low-to-mid-end products; conversely, exports of chloride-process products bucked the trend, rising 5.95% to 0.3665 million tons, demonstrating independent growth in the high-end segment.

First Half of 2026: Export volume reached 1.0684 million tons—approaching 80% of the total volume for the entire year of 2021—thereby reversing the weak export performance seen in 2025 and achieving a strong interim rebound. Total import volume has continued to contract year by year.

In 2021, domestic supply of high-end chloride-process titanium dioxide was insufficient; imports totaled 203,000 tons, reflecting a high reliance on imports.

Imports fell to 178,000 tons in 2022, 152,000 tons in 2023, and 91,900 tons in 2024; in 2025, the total was just 74,500 tons, a sharp year-on-year decline of 18.92%.

Over this five-year period, total import volume shrank by more than 60%. The primary reason is the continuous expansion of domestic chloride-process production capacity and the steadily rising self-sufficiency rate for high-end titanium dioxide. High-end weather-resistant and automotive-grade products—previously reliant on imports from the US, Japan, and Australia—have gradually achieved mass production domestically, leading to a sustained decline in demand for overseas supplies.

The composition of imports has shifted in tandem; while chloride-process products historically accounted for over 60% of total imports, chloride-process imports fell to 44,400 tons in 2025 (down 26.67% year-on-year), whereas sulfate-process imports stood at 30,200 tons (a decline of only 3.99%). This indicates that import substitution for high-end products is proceeding much faster than for commodity-grade products.

III. Structural changes in imports and exports by process over five years

Sulfate process: Exports maintain a solid base, but growth momentum is gradually weakening.

Leveraging its low-cost advantage, the sulfate process has long accounted for over 80% of domestic exports, primarily serving markets for basic construction materials and standard coatings in Southeast Asia, India, and Africa. Exports rose steadily from 2021 to 2024 but fell back significantly in 2025 due to overseas environmental regulations and competition from similar low-priced products. In the first half of 2026, a recovery in demand from emerging overseas infrastructure projects drove a slight rebound in sulfate-process exports; however, the growth rate remained in the single digits, suggesting that the ceiling for growth has been reached. On the import side, the volume of sulfate-process products has long been negligible, consisting only of sporadic shipments of specialized specifications that have no material impact on the domestic market. Chloride Process: Five Years of Sustained High Growth as a Key Engine for Export Expansion

The chloride process is suited for high-value-added sectors such as automotive coatings, photovoltaic films, high-end plastics, and medical materials. Over the past five years, import-export data has revealed a mutually beneficial trend: exports have climbed steadily while imports have contracted year by year. Annual exports via the chloride process stood at less than 200,000 tons in 2021 but surpassed 360,000 tons by 2025; in the first half of 2026 alone, exports reached 260,800 tons—a year-on-year increase of nearly 50%.

Overseas chloride-process facilities in Europe and the US have faced long-term operational constraints due to high natural gas and electricity costs, forcing downstream high-end manufacturers to increase procurement from China. Meanwhile, multiple large-scale domestic chloride-process production lines have come online in recent years. With quality benchmarking against mainstream overseas products and a clear cost-performance advantage, the simultaneous push for import substitution and export expansion in the high-end market has marked the most significant shift in trade structure over the past five years.

IV. Underlying Logic Behind the Shift in Trade Patterns Over the Past Five Years

Persistent Global Energy Cost Disparities Erode Overseas Production Competitiveness

Titanium dioxide production in Europe, the US, Japan, and South Korea relies heavily on natural gas and high-priced electricity. With energy prices remaining high over the last five years, most overseas plants have operated at low capacity, creating a persistent global supply gap. In contrast, integrated domestic titanium dioxide enterprises—supported by captive titanium ore and self-supplied energy—enjoy stable cost advantages. This has driven a continuous shift of overseas orders to China; the widening supply gap in the first half of 2026 further accelerated export volumes.

Domestic Capacity Upgrades and the Achievement of Import Substitution for High-End Products

Five years ago, high-end chloride-process products relied entirely on imports. In recent years, however, new domestic capacity has focused on the chloride process, with continuous improvements in technology and product stability. High-end products no longer depend on overseas sources, and import volumes have been slashed by half year after year. Simultaneously, domestic chloride-process products are being sold in large quantities to high-end manufacturing sectors in Europe, the US, and Southeast Asia. Export growth rates have consistently far outpaced those of the traditional sulfate process, transforming the trade structure from a reliance on low-end exports to a balanced mix of high-end and low-end products. Divergent overseas demand patterns: Emerging markets offset volatility in developed markets

Export destinations have diversified steadily over the past five years. Demand for infrastructure-grade coatings in India, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Middle East, and Africa has grown consistently, providing a stable market for sulfate-process products. Meanwhile, the high-end automotive and photovoltaic sectors in Europe and the US continue to source chloride-process products. These two market segments create a demand hedge; even when trade restrictions arise in certain developed markets, overall export volumes remain resilient. In 2025, weakening demand from traditional European and US markets dragged down annual exports, but a surge in restocking by emerging markets in the first half of 2026 drove a market rebound, pushing exports past the one-million-ton mark for that six-month period.

Persistent domestic demand weakness: Exports serve as a buffer for capacity utilization

The domestic real estate and traditional coatings sectors have remained in a prolonged slump over the past five years; with limited local absorption capacity, a large volume of product relies on export channels. In 2025, sluggish domestic demand combined with a temporary contraction in overseas demand led to a decline in annual exports. However, the arrival of an overseas restocking cycle in the first half of 2026 boosted export volumes, alleviating domestic inventory pressure and restoring the supply-demand balance.

V. Five-year comparison of domestic and overseas supply and demand

Overseas markets have consistently exhibited a pattern of "tight supply for high-end products and intensified competition in low-to-mid-end segments" over the past five years. Europe and the US have no planned additions to local chloride-process capacity, and frequent maintenance of aging facilities has resulted in a persistent shortage of high-end supplies. New small-scale sulfate-process facilities in Southeast Asia and the Middle East can only meet local low-end demand and cannot replace large-scale Chinese products, leading to an increasing reliance on imports from China year by year.

The domestic market has successfully upgraded its production capacity; over the five-year period, small, highly polluting sulfate-process facilities were phased out, while all new capacity was dedicated to the high-end chloride process. Industry concentration has steadily increased, the value-added of exported products has risen, and the trade surplus has expanded. With imports shrinking and exports growing, the industry's global influence has steadily strengthened. VI. Outlook on Future Trade Trends

In the short term—specifically the second half of the year—the traditional stocking cycle for overseas coatings and plastics industries will persist. Export orders for high-end products made via the chloride process are expected to grow, while exports of sulfate-process products will remain stable, supported by demand from emerging markets; consequently, the total annual export volume of titanium dioxide is poised to hit a record high. From a medium- to long-term perspective, domestic production capacity for the chloride process will continue to ramp up, and the share of high-end products in total exports will rise further, while import volumes remain low. The trade pattern established over the past five years—characterized by shrinking imports and surging exports of high-end products—is set to endure. The industry’s development trajectory has fundamentally shifted from relying solely on high-volume sales of low-cost sulfate-process products to driving export growth through high-end chloride-process products; structural changes in import and export data will continue to validate the success of the domestic titanium dioxide industry's transition toward high-end production.

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