MidEast Dec black HDPE pipe falls $30-50/tonne on weak fundamentals

08 December 2011 06:20  [Source: ICIS news]

By Ong Sheau Ling

SINGAPORE (ICIS)--The Middle East spot prices of black compounded high density polyethylene (HDPE) pipe have fallen by about $30-50/tonne (€23-38/tonne) this month for December shipments from November settlements because of ample supply amid flat demand, producers and converters said on Thursday.

The fixtures for December cargoes were done at $1,490/tonne DEL (delivered) GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council), which is equivalent to $1,470-1,490/tonne CFR GCC, industry players said.

This is down by $30-50/tonne or 2.6% from November levels, the players added.

The prices of black pipe grade HDPE started to decline steadily during the fourth quarter of this year, along with the stable-to-soft prices in the leading Asia markets. This decline occurred after a Saudi producer was certified for its black compounded pipe grade HDPE in August.

“With a new player in the market, competition has increased,” a Dubai-based converter said.

“The end of the financial accounting year is just around the corner and given the reduced intention to build up inventories with the converters, producers are trying to push out more [cargoes] to keep their stock levels low,” a southeast Asian polyethylene (PE) producer said.

The offers of southeast Asian material for shipment in December were heard at $1,520/tonne CFR GCC, which did not attract the buyers whose bids were at $1,490/tonne CFR GCC and below.

“The lowest offer we can go is $1,500/tonne CFR GCC,” the PE producer said. “Plus, we have sold out most of our December allocations, so we are selling to customers who need [product] urgently,” the PE maker said.

The prices are likely to remain stable-to-soft moving into 2012 as there are no factors that will help lift prices, market players said.

However, the players added that they are expecting new projects, which will be announced next February and March in various countries in the GCC region, to boost demand and support the prices.

($1 = €0.75)

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By: Ong Sheau Ling
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