Asia EVA makers resume output at reduced levels

24 November 2008 10:00  [Source: ICIS news]

SINGAPORE (ICIS news)--Two more Asian ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) makers, TPI Polene and Formosa Plastics Corp (FPC), have resumed output at reduced levels due to lingering poor demand, company officials said on Monday.

In addition to Hanwha Chemical, Thailand’s TPI Polene said it planned to idle its EVA tubular line at Mab Ta Phut by the end of this week, citing lingering weak demand.

“We will shut down again on Wednesday or Friday and we will restart in about two weeks’ time in early-December,” a company official said.

The official said the company is producing only what it can sell as the downstream footwear market remained in “sleep” mode.

TPI Polene resumed production in mid-November at 80-90% of capacity at the 65,000 tonne/year plant.

“We have limited quantities, only around 700 tonnes of the 18% vinyl acetate content grade,” the TPI official said.

In Taiwan, FPC restarted EVA production at its 150,000 tonne/year Mailiao plant at 50% of capacity in mid-November.

This followed a prolonged one-and-a-half-month shutdown due to poor demand from the downstream footwear industry.

“Overall, EVA inventories are still quite high and we are just producing whatever we can sell,” a FPC official said in Mandarin.

The FPC official also said that in the short term, demand is unlikely to revert back to previous highs, when producers enjoyed a sell-out position every month.

Spot EVA in Asia remained on a nosedive, losing 48.6% from record highs of $2,440-2,480/tonne CFR (cost and freight) CMP (China Main Port)/SE (southeast) Asia in July to an almost three-year low of $1,230-1,300/tonne CFR CMP/SE Asia during last week’s trades, according to global chemical market intelligence service ICIS pricing.

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By: Helen Lee
+65 6780 4359

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