Crude cost pass through in Europe helps push global IPEX up 4.9% in April

LONDON (ICIS)–A sharp rise in petrochemical prices in Europe coupled with increases in the US and Asia helped lift the ICIS Petrochemical Index (IPEX) for April by 4.9%, data showed on Tuesday.

The index represents a basket of 12 petrochemicals and polymers weighted for capacity*.

Commodity petrochemical and polymer prices made the gains in April from March as a rising crude oil price fed into feedstocks and numerous chains of related petrochemical products.

Crude prices rose over the course of the month although the average month to month gain was not a high as that between February and March.

Monthly contract prices in April for the IPEX basket of commodity chemicals showed the most significant gains with the northwest Europe IPEX rising by 9.4%. Rising prices in Europe were pushed higher in US dollar terms also as the euro weakened against the dollar, the change month to month being -1.8%.

Prices rose for 11 of the petrochemicals and polymers in the IPEX basket in Europe with polystyrene (PS) and styrene showing the most significant gains. Methanol prices for the month were lower.

Styrene and PS prices reflected the higher benzene price while butadiene prices rose more strongly than either ethylene or propylene.

In northeast Asia, higher polypropylene (PP) and paraxylene (PX) prices helped push the regional IPEX up 3.3%. Other commodities showed gains although toluene and butadiene prices tracked lower.

Benzene, butadiene, polyethylene and polystyrene prices rose sharply in the US in April but polypropylene prices were lower. April price gains for other petrochemicals and polymers were somewhat weaker and the US regional IPEX gained 4.1%.

The US, northeast Asia and global regional IPEX values for April will be subject to revision when contracts for US ethylene, paraxylene and styrene for the month settle and when an April styrene price in northeast Asia becomes available.

*The IPEX represents price movements in a basket of 12 petrochemicals over the course of each month. The petrochemicals are ethylene, propylene, butadiene, benzene, toluene, paraxylene, styrene, polystyrene, polyethylene, polypropylene, methanol and PVC.

Dating back to January 1993, historical ICIS prices for these products in the US, western Europe and northeast Asian markets have been weighted by regional nameplate capacity to generate the monthly index value.

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