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Home Commodities Chemicals Polycarbonate Polycarbonate prices, markets & analysis

Polycarbonate prices, markets & analysis

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  • About Polycarbonate
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The ICIS Polycarbonate report is published weekly in Asia, Europe and the US and monthly in CIS. These reliable and trustworthy reports can help industry players to keep abreast of the latest news and make informed business decisions.

The price assessments largely focus on general purpose (GP) moulding and GP extrusion grades and cover spot or contract, depending on the region. Market intelligence comprises of regional overviews, upstream news, graphs and production updates.

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Market Overview

Updated to Q4 2020

Asia

Traders liquidating cargoes ahead of the new year led to increased supply, particularly for the domestic Chinese market. However, supply on the Chinese import front continued to be relatively snug. Optical-grade polycarbonate imports into China were tight as two producers had limited supply. By comparison, GP moulding-grade polycarbonate supply was ample, although somewhat tightened when some GP moulding grade polycarbonate was diverted towards producing compounded polycarbonate.

Weakening bisphenol A feedstock values prompted demand to wane as buyers retreated to a wait-and-see stance, expecting the market to decline further. Buyers bought on a hand-to-mouth basis, with producers and traders noting an overall reduction in the cargo size of spot deals concluded. In addition, traders liquidating cargoes ahead of the new year led to a softer polycarbonate market, further contributing to worsening market sentiment, and consequently to poorer demand.

Europe

Supply tightened due to several planned turnarounds, strong demand and limited imports from Asia, where prices reached a two-year record high. Availability problems were exacerbated by rising exports of European PC to Asia, as producers turned their attention to countries like China or South Korea, attracted by pricing. The force majeure announced by Covestro at its PC plant in the US Gulf also diverted material made in the EU to America.

Strong buying appetite from the automotive industry and construction drove demand up in Q4. Other sectors, such as appliances, also placed robust volumes of orders. New restrictions imposed to contain the second wave of the coronavirus also prompted several buyers to stock up on material, to protect themselves from potential logistical disruptions. Buying interest from Asian buyers also put pressure on European pricing.

US

PC supply was tight throughout Q4. Two of the three major PC plants in the US had outages. SABIC took its 245,000 tonne/year Mount Vernon, Indiana, plant down for planned maintenance for 30 days in early October. Covestro shut its 260,000 tonne/year Baytown, Texas, plant in late August ahead of a hurricane and it has been down since. Covestro declared force majeure in October. Strong Asian and European demand kept imports away.

End-use demand for PC was strong throughout Q4. Domestic demand for medical-grade PC — used in coronavirus testing kits, protective shields, and ventilators – was healthy. The auto industry, which accounts for about 18% of PC demand according to ICIS analytics, had a strong second half of the year after the economic lockdown due to the coronavirus devastated the sector in Q2. Automotive and appliance demand was healthy throughout the quarter.

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How we can help

Polycarbonate news and market information products from ICIS

We offer the following regional Polycarbonate analysis and news coverage to keep you informed of factors and developments affecting prices in the Polycarbonate marketplace.

Price reporting

  • More information about the price reports we publish on Polycarbonate
    Independent price assessments and market coverage by region

    • Asia
    • CIS
    • Europe
    • US

Price history

  • More information about the historical price data we publish on Polycarbonate
    Track historical price data

    • Asia
    • CIS
    • Europe
    • US

News & analysis

  • News & market analysis specifically relating to Polycarbonate

Breaking news of latest developments affecting the markets.

Insight and analysis of factors driving prices.

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Services

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Pricing Intelligence

Pricing information

Regional price assessments, published daily or weekly, enabling you to keep track of trading prices, understand price drivers/fluctuations and set a benchmark for contract price settl pricing_report_150ements. ICIS offers reports on over 180 commodities across the global petrochemical, energy and fertilizer markets. Information covered in our price reports includes:

  • Spot and contract price assessments
  • Market commentary on trends and developments
  • Transactions reported and confirmed
  • Plant and production news

Information is accessed online, via the ICIS dashboard service and is configurable to suit your preferences.

  • Find out more about ICIS pricing reports >>

Price forecast services

Produced by the ICIS Consulting team, these reports give a robust rolling 12-month price forecast, trade balances and in-depth analysis into where markets are heading – providing a valuable tool to support your short- to medium-term plans.

  • Find out more about ICIS chemicals forecast reports >>

  • Find out more about ICIS fertilizers forecast reports >>

Dashboard – Easy access to ICIS pricing data

ICIS pricing intelligence is delivered to you online via the ICIS dashboard. Here you can view your reports and also access other useful services including related news, analysis, historical data and market alerts.

ICIS dashboard also makes it easy for you to create pricing charts, download price history and export data to create tailored analytical models.

  • Find more about ICIS dashboard >>
  • Find out more about new ICIS data delivery options: Excel Plug-In & API >>

Margin reports

ICIS weekly margin reports deliver the detail you need to understand how production costs and prices are affecting margins, enabling you to judge the likely impact on your business and optimise your upstream and downstream business decisions.

Find out more about ICIS margin reports >>

Supply and Demand Window on ICIS Dashboardsandd-laptop

The Supply and Demand Window on the ICIS Dashboard provides a snapshot view of historical and forecast information for supply and demand, production capacity and trade flows – a key tool to help safeguard future investments within the chemicals market.

Find out more about the ICIS Supply and Demand Window

Industry News

News Services

24-hour global coverage of breaking news in the petrochemical industry,news service including updates on production, shutdowns and key transacted deals, keeping you informed of market developments as they happen. The ICIS news service allows you to customise the market alerts delivered to your email inbox, providing the business-critical information you need straightaway.

  • Find out more about ICIS news service >>

ICIS Chemical Business magazine

icblIf you want to keep updated on the factors driving price movements in the global chemical markets, ICIS Chemical Business provides a summary of the information you need to support your business decisions. Every week, our global team of experts digests and summarises the key issues and their potential impact on the market – all in one magazine.
  • Find out more about ICB magazine >>

Analytics

Supply & Demand Data

supply-demand-brochure

An expert view of supply and demand comprising four fully-reconciled databases, giving you access to extensive data for more than 100 markets. Information is included on global and regional trade flows, production, capacity and sources of demand in the short-, medium- and long-term. Data can be downloaded, customised and queried to support your planning requirements and your strategic decisions.

  • Find out more about the ICIS supply and demand database >>

Analytics tools for MPG include:

  • Live Disruption Tracker: Supply View
  • Price Drivers Analytics
  • Price Optimisation Analytics
  • Supply & Demand Outlooks

Training and Conferences

Training courses

ICIS provides specialist training courses across the global petrochemicals, base oils and fertilizers industries. Our training team of industry experts can help you increase your knowledge of the industry and gain the insight and know-how needed to operate and trade effectively.

training

  • Find out more about ICIS training courses >>

Conferences

ICIS produces a series of highly informative and timely conferences. Extensive research is carried out to ensure that each programme delivers the information you need and addresses current industry issues. We source speakers who have the appropriate expertise and experience to deliver excellent quality papers.

experts

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Consulting

Global markets

Working closely with you to understand your strategies, challenges and ambitions, the ICIS consulting team deliver tailored advice and solutions to suit your unique requirements. With many years’ experience of guiding business leadership teams, we show you how market conditions can make a positive or negative impact on your long-term plans.

  • Find out more about ICIS consulting services >>

China markets

ICIS expert consultants can provide your organisation with the insight, intelligence and data needed to build and grow your business in China. We can help you to gain a clear view on the short and long-term supply and demand picture in the chemicals, energy, iron and steel, non-ferrous metals and paper and pulp markets in China.

  • Find out more about ICIS consulting expertise in China >>

Methodology

ICIS price assessments are based on information gathered from a wide cross-section of the market, comprising consumers, producers, traders and distributors from more than 250 reporters world-wide. Confirmed deals, verified by both buyer and seller, provide the foundation of our price assessments.

Our in-depth market knowledge drives our specialist focus, as we recognise the importance of individual market dynamics and not a one-size-fits-all approach.

Over 25 years of reporting on key chemicals markets, including Polycarbonate, has brought global recognition of our methodology as being unbiased, authoritative and rigorous in preserving our editorial integrity. Our global network of reporters in Houston, London, Singapore, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Mumbai, Perth and Moscow ensures unrivalled coverage of established and emerging markets.

Polycarbonate Methodology

Polycarbonate (PC) is a type of high specification engineering plastic, suitable for moulding and with a high impact resistance.

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About Polycarbonate

Polycarbonate resins are tough thermoplastics with major markets in the electrical/electronic sectors such as computer and business equipment, optical discs, glazing and sheet products and in the automotive construction industries.

Other uses include safety helmets and shields, housing components, household appliances, water cooler bottles, lighting fixtures, sporting goods, and aircraft and missile components.

Polycarbonates are long-chain linear polyesters of carbonic acid and dihydric phenols, such as bisphenol-A (BPA). It is hydroscopic, has only fair chemical resistance and is attacked by many organic solvents.

Polycarbonate is naturally transparent, with the ability to transmit light nearly that of glass. It has high strength, heat resistance, and excellent dimensional and colour stability.

Different grades of the polymer are available and the grades vary by strength, clarity, moulding temperatures, service temperatures and other parameters.

Polycarbonate is also used in compounds or blended with other resins such as acrylonitrile-butadiene styrene (ABS) or polybutylene terephthalate (PBT).

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