Drop in Europe auto sales leads to Q4 PC rollovers

05 November 2008 15:39  [Source: ICIS news]

LONDON (ICIS news)--The slowdown in the European automotive industry continues to weigh heavily on the polycarbonate (PC) market, with most buyers reporting rollover for fourth-quarter business, market sources said on Wednesday.

Sources spoke of an overall drop in September European automotive sales of 10% compared with 12 months ago, which had taken a huge bite out of demand for PC products.

British car sales declined by 21% in September, and the figures for October are expected to show a drop of more than 25% - the steepest fall since 1991.

One upstream bisphenol-A (BPA) buyer reported that orders dropped 20% in volume compared with 12 months ago, which was reflective of the industry as a whole.

Several players said that the overall PC market could see a drop of up to 30% in demand due to the automotive slump.

The current state of the automotive industry, which is integral to the PC market, made it difficult for producers to push through planned price increases for the fourth quarter.

The majority of business saw a rollover of third-quarter prices, pegging the fourth-quarter level for molten grade at €2.86-3.11/kg ($3.71-4.04) and for extrusion grade at €2.81-3.06/kg.

One producer was planning a €0.19/kg increase on 24 November for any new business, but conceded that weakening demand, combined with the decrease in the cost of upstream raw materials, would make this difficult.

($1 = €0.77)

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By: Truong Mellor
+44 208 652 3214

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