China is on track to import a record 800,000 tons of U.S. ethane in April, a 60% jump over usual monthly volumes, as the Middle East war cuts naphtha and LPG supplies that Asian petrochemicals have traditionally relied on. The conflict has created a major supply shock in Asia, where 60 to 70% of naphtha passes through the Hormuz Strait. With Gulf feedstock curtailed, petrochemical firms across the region have had to reduce output and seek alternative sources. According to estimates from Chinese consultancy JLC cited by Bloomberg, the U.S. ethane volume would be the highest for any month and represents a 60% increase over typical imports. The shift underscores the growing role of American ethane as a substitute for naphtha and LPG in key petrochemical processes. Sector economist Joe Douaihy of Coface said that a prolonged disruption could redefine flows, costs and, perhaps, the very geography of the global petrochemical industry. Commodity intelligence firm ICIS noted that Asia's petrochemical dominance sits atop a feedstock system that is dangerously concentrated, and a single geopolitical shock can reverberate across an entire industrial continent. OilPrice.com reported that U.S. ethane was a major part of the U.S.-China trade war last year, when the Trump Administration restricted exports to China amid the bitter trade row. With supplies restored last summer, ethane from the U.S. has become a preferred feedstock of China's makers of ethylene, the building block of many plastic products. The Middle East war is now set to further increase Chinese dependence on American ethane supplies. By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com