By Malini Hariharan If you are trying to find an explanation for the recent price movement in Asian polyolefin markets, a report in today’s Wall Street Journal offers some clues. China, says the report, has been eating into some of its reserves resulting in a decline in prices of commodities such as refined copper, iron […]
Asian Chemical Connections
Old Assumptions Might Belatedly Change
Source of picture: http://www.andrewgriffithsblog.com/ By John Richardson DOOM-MONGERS are scratching their heads as to why the global petrochemicals industry has remained in such a healthy state over the past 18 months. Old assumptions are, as a result, being challenged. It would be a painful irony if these assumptions are changed just as a […]
Unravelling China’s polyolefin numbers
By Malini Hariharan There is some good and not so good news from China. Import and production numbers for January to April are now available and they tell an interesting story. The good news is that Chinese demand, measured in terms of imports (data from China customs) and local production (data from CBI China), has […]
End-users Acting As Traders Influence China PE Price Correction
By John Richardson LAST week’s sharp decline in polyethylene (PE) pricing in China is being partly blamed on converters who occasionally act as traders liquidating their raw-material inventories. Trading activity by end-users can account for more than 10% of total sales activity in the Chinese market in any one week, the blog has previously been […]
Financial Sector Fear Looms Large
By John Richardson WE will explore the following issues in a lot more detail over the coming days, assuming that the crude and financial market turmoil continues. But for now here follows the interpretation of the crisis from a source with a major polyethylene (PE) producer. The themes are consistent with what we have been picking up […]
Price slide intensifies
By Malini Hariharan The weakness in Asian markets is spreading with steep drops also being reported in olefin prices. Ethylene prices dropped by $160-170/tonnes last week while propylene declined $90-110/tonne, writes my colleague Soo Hwee, ICIS pricing editor for olefins. The poor market conditions were attributed to softness in crude oil and naphtha prices as […]
APIC Confidence A Dangerous Thing?
Mumbai at night Source of picture: travelygan.wordpress.com By John Richardson in Mumbai POLYOLEFINS will not see a margin collapse this year due to persistently strong demand growth and continued problems with new-capacity start-ups, said numerous industry sources on the sidelines of the Asia Petrochemical Industry Conference (APIC) in Mumbai. The belief seems […]
Saudi Gas Shortage Will Last A Long Time
Goodbye to all of that Source of picture: www.gas2.org By John Richardson in Mumbai for the Asia Petrochemical Industry Conference (APIC) EXISTING Saudi Arabian crackers will continue to run at less than 100% until the Kingdom’s oil production returns to 10m bbl/day – and that’s not going happen for some considerable time, […]
All mixed up in the West
By Malini Hariharan The blog has been writing about the softening in olefin and polyolefin prices in the US. But the European market presents an interesting contrast offering arbitrage opportunities for those willing to take the risk. Operating rate reductions have been reported at crackers in Priolo, Italy; Tarragona, Spain; Carling, France; Cologne, Germany; and […]
US-Asia PP Arbirtrage Remains Uncertain
By John Richardson THE jury is out over whether the recent decline in US propylene prices will re-open arbitrage to Asia for polypropylene (PP). Arbitrage for ethylene has remained strong with Dow Chemical disclosing that 20% of its US production went to Asia during Q1 US propylene contracts for May settled at a reduction of […]
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