Asia top stories: weekly summary

SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Here are some of the top stories from ICIS Asia and the Middle East for the week ended 9 February 2015.

India acetone prices fall amid propylene decline, oversupply
Spot acetone prices in India fell this week, tracking the recent decline in propylene prices even as oversupply conditions persisted.

Middle East shapes up as next battleground for Asia PTA
The Middle East is shaping up as the next battleground among Asian purified terephthalic acid (PTA) producers, which need to export excess volumes amid a strong capacity build-up in China and India, market sources said on Thursday.

Asia acetic acid market may get lift from China restocking
Asia’s acetic acid prices may get a lift from restocking activities, when players in the key China market return after a week-long absence amid reduced production, industry sources said.

Asia PTA may stay soft in Q4 on reduced polyester production
Purifed terephthalic acid (PTA) prices in Asia may remain soft for most of the fourth quarter because of reduced operating rates at downstream polyester plants in the key China market, industry sources said on Tuesday.

Asia PX market to turn increasingly balanced from H2 Oct – sources
Market fundamentals for Asia paraxylene (PX) are expected to turn increasingly balanced towards the end of October and early November as downstream users resume normal operations, according to market sources.