Sinopec to cut ethylene output by 5-6% in Sep

09 September 2008 03:37  [Source: ICIS news]

QINGDAO, China (ICIS news)--Sinopec plans to cut ethylene production at its subsidiaries’ crackers by 5-6% in September due to persistently weak demand for derivative products, including polymers, aromatics and synthetic rubbers, a company source said on Tuesday.

“Downstream demand is very weak. Our inventories of derivative products such as polymers and synthetic rubbers have been building up,” he said.

“Our ethylene output in August was cut by about the same amount,” he added.

Sinopec’s initial plan was to cut its August ethylene output by 10-20%.

He declined to explain why production cuts in August were less than planned.

The producer was watching the derivative markets closely and would cut ethylene production further in October if downstream demand didn’t pick up, he added.

The ethylene production cut was in line with the producer’s plans to cut polymer and butadiene production in September.

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By: Chow Bee Lin
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