Europe BASF aims to raise May polystyrene prices by €40/tonne

05 May 2010 16:36  [Source: ICIS news]

LONDON (ICIS news)--BASF intends to raise its May polystyrene (PS) prices by €40/tonne despite the new May styrene monomer contract settling €5/tonne lower, a company source said on Wednesday, soon after the May styrene contract had settled.

Product availability was tight, particularly after INEOS NOVA’s declared force majeure on general purpose PS (GPPS) earlier on Wednesday.

“I have a feeling the styrene price won’t have much of an effect in May,” said one large buyer. “It will be supply and demand that determines prices.”

Supply had been tailored to demand for some time and most PS producers reported a tight stock position after permanent closures in the European PS industry in 2009 had left the market finely balanced.

INEOS NOVA’s Marl PS 190,000 tonne/year facility in Germany was down as part of a three-week planned maintenance turnaround and was due to be operational again in a week’s time.

Dow’s PS plant in Schkopau, Germany, with an estimated annual capacity of 130,000 tonnes/year, was also due to be shut down in the middle of May for a planned maintenance outage scheduled to last three weeks.

PS prices had increased by around €100/tonne ($130/tonne) in April, with general purpose PS (GPPS) now trading at €1,270-1,310/tonne FD (free delivered) NWE (northwest Europe).

Other producers had hinted they would be seeking an increase in spread between styrene and PS in May.

PS producers in Europe include BASF, Dow Chemical, INEOS NOVA, Polimeri Europa and Total Petrochemicals.

($1=€0.77)

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By: Linda Naylor
+44 20 8652 3214

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