China's Helium Imports Grow 22% in 2025; Record Imports in December

China’s gross helium imports surged to a record 134mmcf in Dec’25, closing the year at an average of 87mmcf/m and totalling 1.04bcf (+22% y/y).

The spike was driven primarily by Russia, which shipped 71mmcf in Dec'25 versus the prior 12‑month average of 34mmcf/m. On a full‑year basis, Russian exports to China averaged 38mmcf/m (+60% y/y), highlighting the decisive shift in Asian helium market dynamics. Both November and in particular December saw strong Russian imports – annualising the December imports gives ~835mmcf/y coming out of Russia suggesting a substantial ramp-up in the Amur plant, which will put pressure on global helium prices. Gazprom reported ~450mmcf helium production in 2024 of which we assume roughly 350mmcf through Amur. This implies a ramp up of >2x coming from Amur as Russia expands its market reach.

Chinese Helium Import Volumes (mmcf)

An important consideration is Russia’s use of China as a re‑export hub into Asia circumventing Western sanctions. Province‑level data over recent months shows Guangdong and Shanghai, China's largest re-export hubs to south/southeast Asia, recording 2-3x growth versus their LTM averages: Guangdong rose to ~20mmcf in Dec'25 (vs ~10mmcf/m LTM), and Shanghai to ~18mmcf (vs ~7mmcf/m LTM). Inflows from China are clearly visible from data observed in India, South Korea, and Taiwan. As a result, elevated imports should not be interpreted as a proportionate rise in China’s domestic consumption. Our re-export data is available to November, which indicates that net imports into China YTD increased 13% y/y, which is more representative of demand growth (although this also ignores domestic production growth).

Helium Imports Market Share by Exporter

On the supplier mix, Qatar’s volumes to China also increased but at a steadier pace of ~7% y/y, averaging 48mmcf/m. In just two years, Russia has secured >50% of China’s import market share, while US trade with China has fizzled out. In 2025, the US exported only 13mmcf to China, or ~1.3% of China’s total helium imports. More broadly across key Asian consuming regions (Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, India), the US shipped ~275mmcf for the year (annualised where Dec’25 is not yet reported), amounting to <5% of global supply.

Chinese Helium Import Pricing (US$/mcf)

Pricing shows a structural reset as well. China’s average price fell 15% y/y to US$400/mcf in 2025 compared to ~US$480-500/mcf in other regions globally. Qatari volumes averaged ~US$470/mcf (–8% y/y), while Russian volumes stood at a ~US$160/mcf discount, averaging ~US$310/mcf (–20% y/y) proving that Russia’s undercutting strategy clearly gained it market share. By contrast, Qatari players have not matched the price declines more aggressively, likely due to long‑term contracts still in effect. One of the year’s lowest prices was observed in Shanghai in Oct’25 at US$278/mcf; currently, Russia‑to‑China prices are hovering around US$300/mcf.

Chinese Helium Re-export Pricing (US$/mcf)

Chinese re-exports to Asia are priced in the US$350-450/mcf range, YTD to Nov'25 averaging US$410/mcf. There is no certainty that all Chinese re-exports are necessarily Russian volumes, however, looking at the general pricing trends, it is likely only feasible for China to re-export Russian volumes which are priced at ~US$300/mcf, to which Chinese players could apply a reasonable re-selling premium and ship it onwards. Given Qatari volumes are >US$450/mcf and re-exports are ~US$410/mcf, it does not make logical sense for re-exported volumes to be Qatari. Furthermore, our shipment level tracking in India confirms that imports from China originate in Russia.