The weekly Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) price report is published in Asia, Middle East, Europe, CIS, the US and Latin America. The reports cover, if applicable to the region, different grades of PET such as bottle, film and fibre, domestic prices, spot prices, production news, feedstock quotes, exchange rates and price history.
The unbiased and informative reports are full of news and analysis, and are a vital tool for those involved in the industry to use to make better informed decisions.
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Updated to Q3 2019
Asia
A number of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) producers operated their plants at reduced rates due to commercial reasons. Some had cut their production since Q2, while more producers faced the burden of thin margins and weak spot demand and started to cut some production in Q3. There were two producers that underwent planned maintenances in September. Despite the reduced supply, supply was ample to meet demand and Chinese producers’ inventories climbed from low to medium level.
The seasonal peak demand for summer in the northern hemisphere reduced in Q3. Spot demand did not increase much even during the peak season as many buyers had pre-bought volumes ahead as a precaution from spot material shortage in the same period in 2018. Discussions were progressively hindered by a wide buy-sell gap as the quarter passed with many buyers having sufficient inventories from slow end user consumption partly due to the weak general economy.
Europe
The third quarter was a period of oversupply for domestic producers, to the extent that they lowered rates in order to try and rebalance the market. Import volumes continued to arrive, albeit to a lesser degree than earlier in the year.
The summer season normally commands heightened requirements for PET in order to satisfy the peak demand for bottles. A combination of sporadic hot weather, weak macroeconomic data and the earlier influx of imports, meant that requirements for domestic spot product was disappointing. Prices were also trending down, so buyers preferred to wait for when they considered the bottom to have been reached prior to committing to more product.
Latin America
Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) supply in Latin America during the third quarter of 2019 was ample, with domestic and offshore product readily available in the market. Competition among offers from Mexico, the US and Asia were strong, particularly as domestic demand in China slowed following the US-China trade war and resin prices significantly dropped.
PET demand in Latin America in the third quarter of 2019 was very slow on the back of regional political and economic uncertainties, as well as a global slowdown caused by the prolonged US-China trade war. Buying interest was also affected by the cold winter temperatures in South America. Demand in Mexico was relatively weak despite warm temperatures due to a sluggish economy.
US
US polyethylene terephthalate (PET) supply during the third quarter of 2019 was ample, with offers for domestic and offshore material. Volatility in feedstock prices in February pushed PET prices up briefly, but then fell as the global economic slowdown affected market sentiment and buyers became more cautious. The slowdown in the PET segment triggered price declines upstream in paraxylene.
US PET demand in the third quarter of 2019 was sluggish despite the hot summer weather. The escalation of the US-China trade war weighed on market sentiment, affecting buyers’ confidence who were on the sidelines and held off purchases despite declining resin prices. Concerns over a potential recession also contributed to diminished buying activity.
We offer the following regional Polyethylene terephthalate analysis and news coverage to keep you informed of factors and developments affecting prices in the Polyethylene terephthalate marketplace.
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Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) exists both as an amorphous (transparent) and a semi-crystalline (opaque and white) thermoplastic, and can be made into either a resin or a film.
Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) has a crystalline structure and good chemical resistance to mineral oils, acids and solvents but not to bases. It has good electrical resistance, low moisture absorption; it resists combustion and is self-extinguishing.
PET exists both as an amorphous (transparent) and a semi-crystalline (opaque and white) thermoplastic, and can be made into either a resin or a film. The semi-crystalline PET has good strength, stiffness and hardness while the amorphous PET has better ductility.
PET can be made into a resin, fibre or film. The largest outlet is synthetic fibres, followed by bottle resin. PET film is used in electrical applications and packaging.
In the manufacture of PET resins, purified terephthalic acid (PTA) and monoethylene glycol (MEG) are reacted to make a basic ester which is polymerised in a melt phase, polycondensation finishing reactor.
Dimethyl terephthalate (DMT) is an alternative feedstock to PTA but the PTA route is preferred. The molten polymer is extruded, cut into chips and cooled. The chips pass to a solid state polycondensation unit to form the PET resin.
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