Asia top stories: weekly summary
ICIS Editorial
24-Oct-2016
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Here are some of the top stories from ICIS Asia and the Middle East for the week ended 21 October 2016.
China acetone at 17-month high; supply gain may
curb upside
The upside to China’s spot import acetone prices may be
limited as the restart of domestic plants restores supply,
market participants said.
Asia MMA at 17-month high; tight supply to linger
on
Asia-Pacific spot prices of methyl methacrylate (MMA) have
extended gains for two straight weeks on the back of tight
supply fuelling import demand, industry sources said.
China PTA market enters attrition war as end-users
buy local USD cargoes
China’s purified terephthalic acid (PTA) market is seeing a
war of attrition as local producers fiercely compete with
imported material to preserve their market share.
China’s propylene supply to increase from H2 Oct
on new start-ups
China’s propylene supply is expected to increase from the
second half of October ahead of the restart of a major plant
in Shandong and a slate of new capacities coming online which
will impact the balance of the propylene and polypropylene
(PP) in the domestic market, industry sources said.
India PVC importers to grapple with higher
November offers
India’s polyvinyl chloride (PVC) importers will have to
grapple with higher offers from regional suppliers, at a time
when demand typically picks up, industry sources said.
Asian PE market outlook uncertain as buyers
cautious
Asian polyethylene (PE) market outlook is uncertain, with
regional participants anticipating new offers for November
shipment cargoes to be announced towards the end of the month
and waiting for a clearer price direction.
SE Asia PP market awaits direction from China,
upside limited
Southeast (SE) Asia’s polypropylene (PP) is waiting for price
direction from the key China market after values bottomed out
last week, though upside is seen limited due to bearish
sentiment.
Asia BD upward spiral may lose steam as spot
appetite wanes
Asia’s butadiene (BD) price uptrend may taper off as demand
for spot material appears to be waning, which prompted
Indonesian producer Chandra Asri to withdraw its sales tender
this week, market sources said.
China methanol supply to tighten in ’17 as
MTO units start up
China’s methanol market is in for a slightly tighter
demand-supply fundamentals next year, with the expected
start-ups of new methanol-to-olefins (MTO) capacities,
industry players said.
Asia acrylates turning bullish on Germany’s BASF
explosion
Asian acrylic acid and acrylate ester prices rose this week
as a fatal plant explosion in Germany made its effects felt
in the market here with near-term outlook bullish, sources
said.
Asia etac at 11-month high, may extend gains on
China price run-up
The prices of ethyl acetate (etac) in Asia may extend a
strong rally as the China domestic market run-up continues,
market participants said.
Germany’s SGL sells graphite electrode unit to
Showa Denko
SGL Group has agreed to sell its graphite electrode (GE)
business to Japanese chemical firm Showa Denko in a deal
worth €350m, the German carbon-based products and materials
maker said.
Asia base oil to stabilise on stronger crude after
recent decline
Asia base oil prices could stabilize in November amid the
uptrend seen in oil futures, with regional buyers expected to
be more active in the market in the near term, according to
industry players.
Asia propylene heads south on ample
supply
Spot propylene (C3) prices in Asia headed south this week as
post-holiday restocking activities of Chinese buyers have
fizzled out amid ample regional supply, market sources
said.
India PP may gain on tighter domestic supply in
November
Polypropylene (PP) prices in India may increase as local
supply will further tighten next month, when major producer
Reliance Industries shuts down its facilities for scheduled
turnaround, industry sources said.
Middle East, Asia TDI prices spike amid
panic buying
Prices of toluene di-isocyanate (TDI) in Asia and the Middle
East spiked for the second week in a row, jumping by at least
$1,000/tonne as worried customers scrambled for limited
cargoes, while sellers rode the frenzy by jacking up
prices.
NE Asia ethylene prices steady amid healthy
demand
Northeast Asia’s ethylene import prices are broadly stable as
the impact of rising regional supply is counterbalanced by
healthy demand from the key China market.
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