With globalization increasing in scope, it's important for processors to know how to operate in international markets.
“You need to know how to import resin,” said Resin Technology Inc. international Vice President Craig Farrell at RTI's Executive Forum in Fort Worth. “Negotiate and select when you want to, not when you need to.”
Ample supplies of low-cost resin coming on line in the Middle East are creating opportunities for North American processors, he said.
“By 2013, there will be more global shipments of resin. The Middle East will dominate global export markets to northeast Asia and Europe, and there will be more [resin] shutdowns in Europe and North America,” Farrell said.
“There's going to be a lot of resin moving around world, and the Middle East can export to all regions.”
In general, total transit time to deliver resin to a North American location is about 55 days, counting 20 days for ocean transit.
Farrell suggested that processors get started in the international market by importing a certain number of containers of resin per quarter, to learn how the process works.
“Practical experience is better than theoretical,” he said.
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