By John Richardson IN MARCH 2016 we gave three scenarios for crude-oil prices: Collapsing Demand where we saw crude falling to $25/bbl on weak global demand that would make it impossible to repay much of the huge debts that had been built up since 2008. This is the result of economic stimulus polices that we maintain […]
Asian Chemical Connections
HDPE Premium Likely To Fade
By Malini Hariharan High density polyethylene’s (HDPE) premium over linear low density PE (LLDPE) is likely disappear in the second quarter reversing a trend that has lasted for nearly a year. LLDPE supply is getting tighter with few capacity additions due this year. Additionally plant turnarounds in Asia and the Middle East are also likely […]
Hits And Misses For Indian Projects
By Malini Hariharan The Indian project scene continues to see some hits and misses. Among the projects on track, sources at Gail (India) told the blog last week that expansion of its Pata cracker and a new polyethylene (PE) plant will be completed in Q1 2014. Mechanical completion is due in December 2013,, while commissioning […]
Restocking lifts polyolefins prices
By Malini Hariharan Polyolefins prices in the key China markets inched up last week thanks to an uptick in buying activity. Prices of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) blow moulding and film grades moved up $20/tonne while linear-low density PE prices were up $30/tonne, reports ICIS pricing. Polypropylene prices were also up $10-20/tonne However, opinion continues to […]
A question of balance
By Malini Hariharan It is not surprising to read that at a time when many producers around the world are cutting production, cost-advantaged producers in the Middle East will be maintaining operations at their polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) plants. Producers in the region with access to cheap feedstockts are expected to run their plants […]
Operating rate cuts the only option
By Malini Hariharan News of operating rate cuts is pouring in. Crackers in Japan, Taiwan and parts of southeast Asia have been running at reduced rates of 80-90% in October. But now there is also talk of rate cuts at crackers in South Korea. More importantly, a Sinopec source confirmed yesterday that the Chinese major […]
HDPE-LLDPE spread expands
By Malini Hariharan and John Richardson The spread between high-density polyethylene (HDPE) film grade and linear-low density PE (LLDPE) prices in Asia has steadily widened over the last five months to hit a high of $110/tonne, raising questions on how long this can continue. LLDPE has been consistently cheaper than HDPE since May, a reversal […]
India petchem projects update
By Malini Hariharan India’s major petrochemical projects are inching forward very slowly and the blog will not be surprised if there are more delays along the way. Reliance has yet to kick start its 1.4-1.6m tonnes/year cracker project adjacent to two refineries at Jamnagar, on the west coast of India. The cracker will be based […]
PE Market Weakness Spreads To US
By Malini Hariharan After Europe, the US polyethylene (PE) market has started showing increasing signs of weakness. Spot offers have rapidly fallen putting downward pressure on June contracts that are currently under negotiation. Producers may have no choice but to settle at lower levels as exports to Asia is no longer a viable option. Spot […]
Metallocene action from Chinaplas
By Malini Hariharan The fight for the metallocene market is heating up with South Korean producers increasingly looking at getting a share of this attractive market. SK Corp confirmed plans to build a new metallocene linear-low density polyethylene (MLLDPE) plant outside Asia once a new plant in South Korea starts operations, writes the blog’s colleague […]
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