The U.S. doesn’t export much crude oil or gas to China, but there is a third, lesser-known commodity class that faces dramatic consequences in an escalating trade war—natural gas liquids, especially propane and ethane.
China is by far the largest importer of American ethane—the most common building block for petrochemicals and plastics worldwide—and the second-biggest importer of U.S. propane after Japan. Many countries rely on propane for heating or cooking oil, but China uses it to make propylene—the second-most-utilized petrochemical.
