US plastics are all packaged up with nowhere to go

A constant rush of imports has commanded short supply of equipment needed to move out exports of resins used to make everything from grocery bags and shampoo bottles to vinyl siding and vehicle dashboards. After US resin producers struggled through a year of severe weather that squeezed supply, they entered 2022 with multiple hurdles to restoring those outflows just when more supply is ready to ship out.

Global polymer lead Kristen Hays and US container freight editor David Lademan discuss the whys and wherefores of these logjams, and what shipping and resin markets can expect going forward into the year.