By John Richardson IT IS VERY HARD to see how we will get out of this container crisis anytime soon. The crisis looks set to last until at least the middle of next year. The crisis could get even worse because of our over-reliance on China to make most of the things we need for […]
Asian Chemical Connections
Latest data show China could become PP net exporter by 2026 and net exporter of 3.7m tonnes in 2031
By John Richardson DO YOU WANT the good news or bad news first? This is of course a rhetorical question because I cannot hear what you are saying. I have therefore independently decided to give you the good news first: ICIS forecasts that only 33% of total global net imports of polypropylene (PP) will be […]
China HDPE self-sufficiency risks increase as more new capacity is announced
By John Richardson THE ABOVE chart on the left might not happen, of course. China could remain a huge sink for high-density polyethylene (HDPE) exports up to 2031 and probably beyond that year. The chart is an updated version of my estimates from earlier this year – the chart on the right, which I’ve included […]
Asia and Middle East PP producers need to be more global because markets are more regional!
By John Richardson NORTHEAST ASIAN (NEA) polypropylene (PP) producers are finding it increasingly difficult to export cargoes outside their region because of ample supply elsewhere and buyers’ reluctance to accept long delivery times. Freight costs have also spiked over the recent weeks, but container freight costs still seem workable on some routes. But when you […]
Global LLDPE demand in 2021-2025 faces major downward pressure from developing world crisis
By John Richardson IT USED TO BE the case that petrochemicals demand could be considered as a global whole. But this was before the pandemic. The failure of the rich world to adequately support the developing world in providing sufficient vaccines has led to a form of de-globalisation This is the divided chemicals world I’ve […]
China polyolefins demand in 2021 could be 6.5m tonnes lower than expected with imports a lot weaker
By John Richardson NOW we must be very careful here. Time and time again, Chinese polyolefins growth has defied the doom mongers. Just look at 2015 as a prime example, when, despite a mild economic downturn, polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) consumption growth surprised on the upside, largely because of a surge in internet sales. […]
Asian and Middle East PP exporters lose ground in China but enjoy substantial US sales growth
By John Richardson CHINA’S imports of polypropylene (PP) look set to fall to some 4.4m tonnes in 2021 – a 33% reduction over last year’s imports of 6.6m tonnes. The China Customs department trade data for H1 2021 when annualised imply 4.7m tonnes of imports for the full year 2021. But as around 60% of […]
Global HDPE demand prospects dim on a slower developing world and China
By John Richardson THE DRAG ON global polyolefins growth from declining demand in the developing world will, I think, be much greater than I thought would be the case in March this year, when I did my last round of forecasts for 2021-2025 consumption. The core of the problem is in my view low vaccination […]
Global PP demand growth being dragged lower by the developing world
By John Richardson IN NORMAL CIRCUMSTANCES the above chart – which shows our base case for global polypropylene (PP) demand in 2021 versus my downside for this year – would be extremely significant. If anything like the weaker growth I envisage for this year were to materialise, the whole world would be pushed into significant […]
The developing world must be at the centre of every climate discussion and initiative
By John Richardson THE LATEST Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report makes grim reading if you support the science-based argument, as I do, that we are causing very serious damage to our climate. We must, in my view, start with how we talk about the climate change challenge if we are to solve this […]
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