US July barge acetone contracts fully settle down by 7% from June

26 July 2011 15:40  [Source: ICIS news]

HOUSTON (ICIS)--US July barge acetone contracts fully settled at a drop of 7% from June levels, sources said on Tuesday.

The July barge acetone price was settled at 61.0 cents/lb ($1,345/tonne, €941/tonne) DEL barges (delivered via barges), down from 65.5 cents/lb in June.

The biggest factor pushing the barge acetone price lower was weaker feedstock values for refinery-grade propylene (RGP) and the US July benzene contract.

Spot RGP prices have been trading at less than 70 cents/lb for July so far, as assessed by ICIS.

Demand for acetone from the methyl methacrylate (MMA) market was stable through July, with plants running full-out during the month.

The US barge acetone contract is settled between three large acetone producers – Georgia Gulf, INEOS Phenol and Shell Chemical – and the three largest MMA producers – Dow Chemical, Evonik and Lucite.

($1 = €0.70)

To learn more about acetone or MMA, visit ICIS chemical intelligence

By: John Dietrich
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