US PP margins fall for RGP, rise for naphtha

HOUSTON (ICIS)–US polypropylene (PP) margins declined for material made from refinery-grade propylene (RGP) during the past week but rose for material made from feedstock naphtha, the ICIS margin report showed on Tuesday. 

Integrated contract PP margins for RGP fell by 1.50 cents/lb ($33/tonne). Average March margins totaled 2.28 cents/lb below February. However, first-quarter margins have increased 4.66 cents/lb higher than Q4 2015. 

Integrated contract PP margins for naphtha increased by 1.44 cents/lb as naphtha costs fell by 3.6% and co-product credits improved by 3.3%. 

First-quarter PP margins appear headed for the highest point in more than a decade, with provisional margins almost 10 cents/lb higher than Q4, the report said. 

First-quarter standalone margins based on buying contract propylene and selling export (spot) PP are the highest since ICIS margin records began in 2000.