What follows is an entirely personal take on the challenge of plastic waste and does not represent the views of ICIS or any other expert opinion I have sought out. The views are put forward in the spirit of debate as we move forward, as an industry, to solve the crisis of plastic waste. By […]
Asian Chemical Connections
Inflation anxiety is misplaced as upward price pressures are only temporary
By John Richardson SOME PEOPLE are panicking about global inflation. But I believe that much of the upward pressures on producer and consumer prices are temporary as they are the result of supply chain disruptions which will eventually disappear. I also believe that demographics in the West and China represent long-term deflationary pressures that are […]
China will create petrochemicals deflation with the only question being how
By John Richardson THE FEEDBACK I have received on my series of posts about the potential for rapidly rising Chinese petrochemicals self-sufficiency has focused on the detail. “I don’t see China building that many new paraxylene (PX) plants because they are already long on gasoline, so they cannot keep adding refineries to supply the mixed […]
Petrochemicals markets complexity is only going to grow and grow
By John Richardson NICE WORK, if you get can get it. A trucking company in Fort Worth, Texas, is offering to pay experienced drivers $14,000 a week – $728,000 a year – as the US struggles with a nationwide shortage of truckers or lorry drivers. This reminds me of perhaps an apocryphal tale, from the […]
India’s pandemic crisis is a pointer towards wider developing-world risks
By John Richardson IT IS fabulous to read about how Indian Oil Corp and Reliance Industries are supplying oxygen from their petrochemicals operations to help relieve the Indian medical shortages. Local steel plants are also diverting oxygen supplies to hospitals as international relief efforts gather pace. My thoughts and best wishes are with my Indian […]
The supply-chain inflation threat to petrochemicals demand
By John Richardson and Fergus Jensen (ICIS market reporter, European isocyanates and styrene) CONTAINER FREIGHT space will remain in short supply until Q4 this year, said the Maersk chief executive, confirming earlier analysis by Drewry Consulting. Global supply chains are also stressed by shortages of everything from semiconductors to wooden pallets, metal drums and tin […]
Global polyolefins for the rest of 2021: supply to lengthen as demand muddle continues
By John Richardson SOMEHOW, despite the still very serious container freight shortages that have limited imports, buying sentiment seems to have weakened in the European polyolefins market, according to my outstanding ICIS colleague, Linda Naylor. Our excellent ICIS Pricing team in Asia are also sensing a shift in the mood in southeast Asia (SEA) as […]
Petrochemical market confusion set to continue as China deflation approaches
By John Richardson OFFERING clear guidance to petrochemicals investors and other stakeholders remains incredibly difficult in this environment. What happens next has probably never been as uncertain, making it difficult for producers to provide concrete projections for the rest of 2021 following an excellent Q1. At the heart of the problem remains whether demand in […]
China PP and styrene Q1 apparent demand seems to indicate slowdown
By John Richardson WE MUST BE careful here. If 2020 taught is anything, it is that China has the capability of stunning everybody with the speed of its economic growth, even against a backdrop of a much slower global economy. Few people imagined, including myself, that in the dark days of March last year, China […]
China threatens to shift global petrochemicals from inflation to deflation as self-sufficiency increases
By John Richardson POLYPROPYLENE (PP) producers in Europe and the US are making very good money as the slide below shows, detailing LPG-based variable cost margins. In Asia, where margins have long lagged behind the other two regions, profitability has also picked up. Demand isn’t going to be the problem Part of the explanation is […]