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Polyvinyl Chloride09-Jul-2024
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Market players in Asia are
increasingly becoming more interested in the
use of pyrolysis oil as fuel.
This was one of the critical insights gained by
the ICIS recycling analyst team when they were
at the Asia Petrochemical Industry Conference
(APIC) 2024 in Seoul, South Korea, in May and
the 2024 China Plastics Circularity Economy CEO
Roundtable in Beijing, China, in June.
Join recycling analysts Joshua Tan and Chua Xin
Nee in this podcast as they discuss their key
takeaways from both events and take a deeper
dive into the recycling landscape in China.
For more information about Asia’s recycling
market, please contact joshua.tan@icis.com and xinnee.chua@icis.com.
Petrochemicals08-Jul-2024
LONDON (ICIS)–Click
here to see the latest blog post on
Chemicals & The Economy by Paul Hodges,
which looks at the rising impact from Houthi
attacks in the Red Sea and this year’s
hurricane season.
Editor’s note: This blog post is an opinion
piece. The views expressed are those of the
author and do not necessarily represent those
of ICIS. Paul Hodges is the chairman of
consultants New
Normal Consulting.
Ethylene08-Jul-2024
HOUSTON (ICIS)–Here are the top stories from
ICIS News from the week ended 5 July.
Hurricane Beryl
strengthens and shifts path, expected to hit
Texas’ Corpus Christi
Hurricane Beryl is expected to post a “slow
re-intensification” as it heads towards the
north and could potentially hit Texas’
industrial hub of Corpus Christi by Monday.
Mexico’s Altamira
petrochemicals players breathe sigh of relief
as Beryl weakens
Fears that Hurricane Beryl could cause
widespread disruption to petrochemicals
production in the Altamira hub, in the Mexican
state of Tamaulipas, have now subsided as the
hurricane weakens on its path through the
Caribbean.
Hurricane Beryl
expected to weaken after hitting Mexico’s
Yucatan peninsula
Hurricane Beryl, which until 3 July was a
powerful Category 5 hurricane, weakened to
Category 3 by Thursday morning as it headed
towards the Mexican peninsula of Yucatan.
INSIGHT: Chem
shipping to get break from Panama Canal, tariff
front-loading
The Panama Canal Authority (PCA) is allowing
more traffic to pass through the waterway,
while the rush to ship goods before the start
of tariffs should end soon – all of which
should give chemical shippers some relief from
elevated freight costs.
US June auto
sales fall from May on high prices, interest
rates, cyber-attack, but could grow in
H2
US June sales of new light vehicles fell from
May, but total sales in the second quarter
showed a modest improvement over Q1, according
to data from the US Bureau of Economic Analysis
(BEA).
Rethinking
business models for resilience in a fragile
world to drive M&A – DC
Advisory
Chemical companies are in many ways rethinking
their business models to become more resilient
in a fragile and volatile operating
environment, potentially leading to more
mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity, an
investment banker said.
US manufacturing
remains in contraction but chemicals
healthy
US manufacturing activity remained in
contraction territory in June but output in the
chemicals sector was healthy on the back of
healthy new orders, the Institute of Supply
Management’s (ISM’s) purchasing managers’ index
(PMI) survey showed on Monday.
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Speciality Chemicals08-Jul-2024
SAO PAULO (ICIS)–Here are some of the stories
from ICIS Latin America for the week ended on 5
July.
NEWS
Mexico’s Altamira
petrochemicals players breathe sigh of relief
as Beryl weakens
Fears that Hurricane Beryl could cause
widespread disruption to petrochemicals
production in the Altamira hub, in the Mexican
state of Tamaulipas, have now subsided as the
hurricane weakens on its path through the
Caribbean.
Brazil’s Braskem
still facing logistical woes at Triunfo
facilities
Brazil’s polymers major Braskem is still facing
some logistical challenges at its facilities in
Triunfo, in the floods-hit state of Rio Grande
do Sul, according to a letter to customers seen
by ICIS.
Brazil’s
automotive 2024 output expected lower as
‘uncontrolled’ imports keep
rising
Brazil’s automotive trade group Anfavea this
week downgraded its forecasts for production in
2024 due to ever-rising vehicle imports –
mostly from China, with several producers
signing a letter to the government asking for
higher import tariffs on cars.
US dominates base
oils exports to Brazil with around 75% market
share
The US remains the largest exporter to the
Brazilian base oils market, with the country’s
lead widening in 2024, according to an expert
on Tuesday.
INSIGHT: Chem
shipping to get break from Panama Canal, tariff
front-loading
The Panama Canal Authority (PCA) is allowing
more traffic to pass through the waterway,
while the rush to ship goods before the start
of tariffs should end soon – all of which
should give chemical shippers some relief from
elevated freight costs.
Brazil’s
manufacturing recovers but faces pressure on
currency depreciation
Sales growth in Brazil’s manufacturing is being
dented by challenging economic conditions,
currency depreciation and order postponements
after the floods crisis, analysts at S&P
Global said on Monday.
Mexico’s
manufacturing expands in June but new export
orders, job creation fall
Mexico’s manufacturing expanded in June and
remained practically stable from May on the
back of factory orders rising, which kept
production healthy, analysts at S&P Global
said on Monday.
Colombia’s
manufacturing remains in contraction in
June
Colombia’s manufacturing sectors remained in
contraction territory in June as a further
decline in new orders led to reduced output,
analysts at S&P Global said on Tuesday.
Colombia’s fiscal
plans based on ‘rosy’ growth assumptions –
analysts
Plans presented by the Colombian government to
reduce its fiscal deficit are based on “rosy”
assumptions for growth and are likely to be
missed, according to analysts.
PRICING
Higher hydrous ethanol
prices reflect strong sales
performance
Hydrous ethanol prices rose this week,
reflecting ongoing strong sales performance in
the market.
Surging PET
prices in Brazil and Mexico for
July
Prices for PET in Brazil experienced an upward
trend during the first week of July, driven by
the ongoing rise in international freight
rates. This increase reflects the continued
influence of escalating global shipping costs
on the local market for PET resin.
Innova amends
July PS price increase in
Brazil
Innova amended a price increase to Brazilian
real (R) 1,200/tonne ($218/tonne), excluding
local taxes, on all grades of polystyrene (PS)
sold in Brazil, effective 4 July, up from
previously announced R750, according to a
customer letter.
Liquefied Petroleum Gas08-Jul-2024
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Squeezed by high propane
costs and weak propylene prices, some Chinese
propane dehydrogenation (PDH) operators are
turning to a potential lifeline:
commercializing hydrogen, a valuable byproduct
of their operations.
Join ICIS LPG analysts Lillian Ren and Shihao
Zhou as they discuss how commercializing
hydrogen could turn the tide for China’s PDH
producers. They’ll delve into current market
challenges, the potential of hydrogen as a
lifeline, and what this shift could mean for
the future of the industry.
Ethylene08-Jul-2024
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–China’s Hengli Group is
planning to invest yuan (CNY) 9.2 billion ($1.3
billion) into its shipbuilding business at
Dalian in Liaoning province, the company said
on Monday.
Its subsidiary Hengli Heavy Industry will build
a shipbuilding capacity of 1.8 million
deadweight tonnes (DWT) each year and 1.8
million tonnes/year of steel processing
capacity at Changxin Island in Dalian City in
northeastern China, the company posted on its
account on WeChat, a Chinese social media
platform.
An agreement was signed on 7 July between
Hengli Group and the local governments of
Dalian City and Changxin Island on the
investment.
The investment will expand the Group’s building
capacity of ultra-large carriers of crude and
liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), container
vessels, offshore floating storage and drilling
facilities.
Separately, Hengli Heavy Industry on 3 July
inked a deal to build six 325,000 DWT ore
tankers for Singapore’s shipping firm Winning
International Group.
The shipping company in September 2023 had
ordered two WinningMax carriers from Hengli.
Hengli Group entered the shipyard business in
2022 through the acquisition of STX (Dalian),
the Chinese unit of South Korea’s STX Group.
Hengli Group is parent of Hengli Petrochemical.
($1 = CNY7.27)
Speciality Chemicals08-Jul-2024
LONDON (ICIS)–Here are some of the top stories
from ICIS Europe for the week ended 5 July.
Shell
to post up to $2 billion in impairments in Q2
results
Energy major Shell on Friday said that it
expects to book $2 billion in post-tax
impairments following the sale of its Singapore
assets and the suspension of construction at
its biofuels plant in the Netherlands.
European Commission
imposes China EV tariffs citing ‘unfair’
subsidies
The European Commission is to move forward with
proposed plans to impose tariffs of nearly 40%
in some cases to China-manufactured battery
electric vehicles (BEVs), citing a level of
state subsidy it terms as “unfair”.
Global phenol demand
expected to rise, driven by downstream
growth
Global phenol demand is expected to increase by
about 1.9% in 2024 after a weak 2023, supported
by growth in the key downstream bisphenol A
(BPA) market.
Europe cracker margins
down on firmer naphtha, LPG costs
Europe cracker margins went down week on week
on the back of firmer feedstock costs, ICIS
margin analysis showed on Tuesday.
Eurozone manufacturing
momentum ebbs in June as demand
deteriorates
Eurozone manufacturing sector activity slipped
further into contraction in June as demand
slowed in most of the bloc’s largest economies,
while conditions improved in the UK.
Gas08-Jul-2024
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Here are the top stories from
ICIS News Asia and the Middle East for the week
ended 5 July 2024.
OUTLOOK: Snug import supply supports Asia MEG
amid slowing demand
By Judith Wang 03-Jul-24 11:52 SINGAPORE
(ICIS)–Monoethylene glycol (MEG) import supply
in Asia for July is expected to stay snug in
the near term, while demand looks set to slow
down.
INSIGHT: Methanol or ethylene, that is the
question for China
By Doris He 02-Jul-24 17:00 SINGAPORE
(ICIS)–China’s methanol-to-olefins (MTO)
industry has always been a focus of attention
among methanol market players, as it accounts
for half of overall demand. More attention has
recently been shifted to ethylene, from the
overall margins of a typical MTO plant in
coastal regions.
OUTLOOK: Asia nylon markets may slow down in H2
2024 on lengthened supply
By Charmaine Lim 01-Jul-24 14:40 SINGAPORE
(ICIS)–Nylon markets in Asia are expected to
slow in H2 2024 compared to the first half of
the year as the upcoming seasonal lull in Q3
approaches, with new capacities planned to
start up in China this year.
S Korea antidumping probe on China SM extends
to Sept, discussions and hearings
ongoing
By Luffy Wu 01-Jul-24 15:22 SINGAPORE
(ICIS)–The Korea Trade Commission is
continuing with its anti-dumping probe against
styrene monomer (SM) imports from China, with
some discussions and hearings between the
government and market players heard ongoing.
PODCAST: China oxo-alcohols to face
supply-demand pressure, new capacity to be a
focus
By Claire Gao 01-Jul-24 19:24 SINGAPORE
(ICIS)–In this podcast, ICIS analyst Claire
Gao explores the oxo-alcohols market overview
and outlook.
OUTLOOK: Persistent economic woes dampen Asia
chemical freight demand
By Hwee Hwee Tan 02-Jul-24 12:03 SINGAPORE
(ICIS)–Asia’s chemical freight demand is
dampened as macroeconomic doldrums were pulling
back spot trades well into the third quarter
despite reducing plant capacity losses for key
liquid bulk products.
Ethylene07-Jul-2024
HOUSTON (ICIS)–Tropical storm Beryl is
expected to make landfall by Monday between
Corpus Christi and Freeport, Texas, the homes
to several chemical plants and refineries as
well as two of the nation’s major terminals
that export liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Tropical storm Beryl is 195 miles (315 km),
south southeast of Matagorda Bay, with maximum
sustained winds of 65 miles/hour, according to
the National Hurricane Center. It should become
a hurricane later on Sunday and continue
strengthening before making landfall by early
Monday in the middle of the Texas Gulf Coast.
The following map shows the forecasts path of
Beryl.
Source: National Hurricane Center
BERYL THREATENS PETCHEMS, LNG
TERMINALSPetrochemical plants
and complexes as well as refineries, LNG
terminals and oil-exporting operations are with
the center’s hurricane watch zone, which
includes Corpus Christi, Victoria and Freeport.
The rest of the Texas coast is subject to a
tropical storm warning.
Corpus Christi is home to petrochemical plants,
refineries, an LNG terminal and major crude oil
exporting operations.
Freeport is home to an LNG terminal and several
petrochemical plants, including Dow’s major
complex.
PORT OPERATIONS
THREATENEDThe National Hurricane
Center also issued a storm surge warning that
covers Corpus Christi Bay, Matagorda Bay and
Galveston Bay.
In regards to US oil and gas production in the
Gulf of Mexico the Bureau of Safety and
Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) has not issued
any reports.
Thumbnail shows Beryl. Image by National
Hurricane Center.
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