Recently, South Korea** unexpectedly discovered that China had suspended the export customs clearance process for South Korea's AdBlue solution. The move has put South Korea in a difficult position, as South Korea is almost entirely dependent on imports of AdBlue solution from China, which is the world's largest producer and exporter of urea. This article will describe this incident in detail and its impact on the Korean chain.
South Korea is one of the countries in the world with more than 10 million diesel vehicles. In order to ensure that the exhaust gases emitted by diesel vehicles meet environmental protection standards, South Korea** stipulates that newly registered diesel vehicles must be equipped with urea catalytic reduction (SCR) system. Currently, 4 million diesel vehicles in South Korea are equipped with Euro VI standards, which require urea to treat exhaust gases. However, South Korea itself is unable to meet this high demand, mainly because its domestically produced AdBlue solution** is not advantageous and is gradually being eliminated from the market. Therefore, South Korea's AdBlue solution is almost completely dependent on China's imports, and according to statistics, more than 97% of South Korea's AdBlue solution is dependent on China for raw materials.
South Korea** believes that the suspension of the customs clearance process for the export of AdBlue solution to South Korea by the General Administration of Customs will have less impact on South Korea's supply, because South Korea's current inventory can still be used for 3 months. However, after learning that China had suspended the export of AdBlue solution to South Korea, South Korea** and related companies immediately held an emergency meeting to discuss plans to diversify import channels and expand reserves. This shows that although South Korea wants to reduce its dependence on China, it still needs China's support in the current situation.
China's postponement of the customs clearance process for the export of AdBlue solution to South Korea is not due to political reasons, but because of domestic tensions. The General Administration of Customs said the move was to prioritize domestic demand. South Korea has put forward a proposal to hope that the industrial departments of the two countries will conduct a dialogue on the first chain in order to smoothly promote the first chain plan of various items such as urea solution. The Chinese side responded that the relevant mechanism will be launched as early as this month, and expressed its willingness to hold dialogue with the ROK side to resolve the issue.
This incident once again demonstrated China's influence and role in the international market, especially in important products for some countries. Although South Korea has demonstrated close ties with the United States in some areas, this does not mean that South Korea will be able to leave China's cooperation. For South Korea in particular, although its domestic demand for AdBlue solution is high, its own production capacity is limited, and it has to rely on Chinese imports. Therefore, South Korea should recognize the importance of cooperation with China for its economy and domestic production, and not blindly follow the US strategy of containing China, so as not to trigger unbearable consequences.
In short, China's suspension of the export customs clearance process of AdBlue solution to South Korea has aroused great concern in South Korea. The move exposes South Korea's huge reliance on AdBlue solutions, as well as its weaknesses in production and chaining. The Chinese side said that the postponement of exports was caused by domestic tensions, and expressed its willingness to hold dialogue with the South Korean side to resolve the issue. As a South Korea, we should recognize the importance of cooperation with China and maintain a pragmatic and stable attitude when dealing with issues that affect the interests of both countries. At the same time, international changes have reminded all countries, especially those countries that are highly dependent on specific countries or regions, that they should strengthen industrial restructuring and diversify import channels to improve their ability to resist risks.