REGULAR readers of the blog will know that I first highlighted the big polyolefins market divergence in April 2021. Back then, I said that:
Asia and Middle East producers needed to sell more to Europe.
Buyers should secure more resin supplies from Asia.
Asian Chemical Connections
Global chemicals face negative growth on inflation, more logistics problems and a deep China downturn
SUPPLY-CHAIN problems continue to disrupt the global chemicals and polymer industries more than two years since the pandemic began.
Right now, the centre of attention of supply-chain anxiety is China.
US domestic PE logistics challenges may create bigger opportunity for other producers in Europe
US PE exports could be restricted in 2022 by local logistics challenges as China’s imports decline as its economy suffers a recession. The centre of attention for Asian and Middle exporters may therefore be Europe.
Europe HDPE: why net imports could be 3m tonnes higher this year
EUROPE’S NET HDPE imports could be as high as 4.1m tonnes in 2022 versus last year’s 1.1m tonnes.
China’s 2022 PE growth may be minus 3% with net imports declining by 29%
I AM JUST about clinging to a base case of positive China polyethylene (PE) demand growth in 2022 because China has a great track record of turning its economy around after short periods of weaker growth. But this time could be different.
Major China PE and PP rate cuts fail to halt slide in spreads to historic lows
Reductions in production seem to have been forced by the logistics and demand challenges caused by Zero-COVID.
China polyolefins 2022 growth and import risks increase
WE HAVE BEEN here before, of course. In April 2020, pessimism abounded about China’s growth prospects that turned out to be unfounded because of the extraordinary strength of its post peak-pandemic recovery. But circumstances that led to the economic rebound in the second half of 2020 were very different.
New global LLDPE demand scenarios in the context of Ukraine-Russia
How on earth does one respond to the daily news flow? The answer must be headline scenarios – best, – medium and worst-case scenarios
Ukraine-Russia: how the crisis could reshape petrochemicals demand
I hope what follows helps as a first pass at describing the new environment in which our industry is operating as a result of the Ukraine-Russia conflict.
Ukraine, the global food crisis and implications for polyethylene
THE GLOBAL FOOD crisis is first and foremost a potential humanitarian disaster that must be avoided. But “must” doesn’t mean “will”, of course. Nobody should underestimate the scale of the challenges in front of us.