LME Plastics: Asia LLDPE contracts gain $90

14 December 2007 15:29  [Source: ICIS news]

LONDON (ICIS news)--Linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) prices surged week-on-week on the London Metel Exchange (LME), with all Asia contracts gaining $95, North America prices up $20 and global contracts $15 higher than last Friday.

 

The $95 leap saw Asia LLDPE contracts move higher than Europe for the first time since the regional figures were introduced in June 2007.

 

North America polypropylene (PP) booked a more modest $5 gain across all three contracts, while Europe December and January PP contracts dropped $10 and $20 respectively.

 

On Thursday, the LME said it planned to align its plastics futures contracts with the model it uses for its more successful metals contracts to attract more participants to the market.

 

The exchange’s regional and global plastics contracts would be changed from free on truck (FOT) to the in-warehouse basis used for its non-ferrous metals.

 

Plastics futures prices from the London Metal Exchange are given in the table below. Further details and comparisons with price data published earlier are available directly from the exchange. The LME site requires free user log-in.

 

LME Plastics: prices

 

Date:	Dec 14
	PP
$ per tonne	Global	Asia	Europe	North America
Cash (B)	1,360	1,370	1,570	1,440
Cash (S)	1,375	1,380	1,590	1,470
Dec (B)	1,360	1,370	1,570	1,440
Dec (S)	1,375	1,380	1,590	1,470
Jan (B)	1,360	1,370	1,570	1,440
Jan (S)	1,375	1,380	1,590	1,470
	LLDPE
	Global	Asia	Europe	North America
Cash (B)	1,355	1,475	1,470	1,355
Cash (S)	1,375	1,495	1,490	1,375
Dec (B)	1,355	1,475	1,470	1,355
Dec (S)	1,375	1,495	1,490	1,375
Jan (B)	1,355	1,475	1,470	1,355
Jan (S)	1,375	1,495	1,490	1,375

 

B = Buyers

S = Sellers

 

European olefins producers were bullish on first-quarter contracts, repeating on Friday the need for big increases of about €80-90/tonne ($118-132/tonne) to avoid negative margins heading into 2008.

 

Linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) futures prices in China closed yuan (CNY) 355/tonne ($48.17/tonne) lower on Friday from a week ago, as government plans to further tighten credit controls dampened sentiment in the polymers market.

 

Basell, National Gas Co of Trinidad and Tobago and National Energy Corp of Trinidad and Tobago will build a 450,000 tonne/year polypropylene (PP) plant in the Caribbean state.

By: Staff Reporter
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