News library
Subscribe to our full range of breaking news and analysis
Expert pricing, news and analytics
Complete your details, and a member of our Sales team will guide you through the purchase process.
Viewing 1-10 results of 56695
Crude Oil29-Apr-2024
LONDON (ICIS)–Crude prices will likely face
downward pressure this week amid rising demand
concerns.
Investors will be keeping a watch on the US
Federal Reserve meeting later this week after
worrying GDP and inflation data.
Despite a persistent risk premium, continued
ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas could
contribute to bearish sentiment.
ICIS experts look ahead to the likely factors
that will drive oil prices in Week 18.
Speciality Chemicals29-Apr-2024
LONDON (ICIS)–The European and US epoxy resins
markets are in a tug of
war between margin and
cost struggles versus still fragile underlying
demand and competition from China and elsewhere
in Asia.
The US anti-dumping case for epoxy resins
against several Asian countries and the EU anti
subsidy probe against Chinese wind turbines are
also talking points as the West looks to
protect its industry against unfair
competition.
Senior editor Heidi Finch who covers the Europe
epoxy market discusses current and near
term expectations with fellow senior editor
Tarun Raizada, who covers the US epoxy market.
Margin woes, tepid demand and Asia
competition weigh on Europe, US epoxy
Regulatory cases aim to tackle unfair
competition from China, rest of Asia
Near-term outlook cautious on demand,
macroeconomics; seasonality likely to be
diluted
Edited by Will Beacham
Ethylene29-Apr-2024
HOUSTON (ICIS)–Here are the top stories from
ICIS News from the week ended 26 April.
LyondellBasell sees
continued PE momentum in North America, Europe
– CEO
Polyethylene (PE) demand in North America and
Europe should continue to improve in Q2 and
through H2 with consistently healthy demand in
packaging, the CEO of LyondellBasell said on
Friday.
Eastman eyes 2027 startup
for second US methanolysis plant, French
project timing uncertain
Eastman expects to reach a final investment
decision (FID) on its second US methanolysis
(chemical recycling) plant in Q3, CEO Mark
Costa and CFO Willie McLain told analysts
during the company’s Q1
earnings call on Friday.
Dow
sees ‘meaningful’ H2 recovery on PE margins,
steady demand improvement – CFO
Dow continues to expect a strong second half,
mainly driven by higher integrated polyethylene
(PE) margins, with Q2 sales also expected to
trend higher versus the first half in all three
of its segments, its chief financial officer
said on Thursday.
INSIGHT: Latin America’s
nascent EV market increasingly a Chinese
affair
Latin America’s take-up of electric vehicles
(EVs) has started to gain momentum, said the
International Energy Agency (IEA) this week,
with Chinese producers drawing customers with
sharply lower prices than western, established
brands.
Canada moves ahead with
plastics registry as UN plastics pollution
session starts in Ottawa
Following the conclusion of a consultation
period, Canada’s federal government has
published a formal notice in the Canada
Gazette for its planned
Federal Plastics Registry.
Styrolution Sarnia
closure further tightens North America styrene
market
INEOS Styrolution’s decision this past weekend
to temporarily close its Sarnia, Ontario,
styrene unit will further tighten a market
already dealing with several outages. Prices
are under upward pressure with contract prices
the highest since Q3 2023.
Global News + ICIS Chemical Business (ICB)
See the full picture, with unlimited access to ICIS chemicals news across all markets and regions, plus ICB, the industry-leading magazine for the chemicals industry.
Ammonia29-Apr-2024
SAO PAULO (ICIS)–The founder of Unigel, aged
87, is actively fighting the Brazilian
chemicals and fertilizers producer’s most
decisive battle, one for its survival, as it
tries to restructure its debts, one step away
from bankruptcy.
Henri Armand Szlezynger, who founded Unigel in
1966, has fought several financial battles
before, and overcame them.
But the current struggle is the most decisive
yet because it could see him and his family
losing their controlling stake at the producer
if investment funds were to take over.
Last week, Brazilian financial daily
Valor reported the country’s fund IG4
was seeking to acquire a controlling stake in
Unigel, citing several unnamed sources.
IG4 and Unigel had not responded to a request
for comment at the time of writing.
Unigel producers styrenics and is one of
Brazil’s few fertilizers producers, a sector it
entered just a few years ago and which could
prove to have been the reason for the company’s
threatened demise.
BELGIUM-BORN,
BRAZIL-MADEIf ICIS had a profile
section portraying chemicals industry people,
Szlezynger would have featured in it several
times. Szlezynger was born to a Belgian Jewish
family in 1936 which moved to Brazil when he
was just three years old as Europe was entering
the abyss of war.
The family had a good position and sent
Szlezynger to the best schools in Brazil. After
that, he went to the US to study chemical
engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT).
Aged only 30, he founded Unigel.
From there, on he went to become one of
Brazil’s richest citizens, with Forbes
estimating his net worth at Brazilian reais (R)
17.2 billion ($3.3 billion) in 2022.
From its foundation 58 years ago, Szlezynger
still controls Unigel, and his presence cannot
go unnoticed: he still goes to the company’s
headquarters in Sao Paulo every weekday,
according to previous profiles of him published
in the press. A remarkable fate for an
87-year-old.
Unigel’s frantic 2023 was marked by high
natural gas costs which made its fertilizer
plants – and the company as a whole – a
loss-making enterprise, a situation it tried to
fix by knocking on the door of Brazil’s
state-owned energy major Petrobras.
With a government-appointee CEO, to say
Petrobras is to say Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva,
a President who has repeatedly said that Brazil
must reduce its dependence on fertilizer
imports.
In Brazil’s economy, entrepreneurs and
politicians tend to have close relationships,
and Szlezynger has recurrently ticked the right
boxes to get the support his company may have
needed as the years and crises went by.
In the north, stronghold of Lula’s Workers’
Party (PT), he has not shied away from showing
sympathy with PT politicians. In southern and
generally conservative-governed states,
Szlezynger has had good relationships with
politicians from the right.
However, the business-politics link did not
work for Unigel’s current downturn.
Conversations with Petrobras were going nowhere
while the company continued to lose millions
every month.
In a way, Unigel’s annus horribilis of
2023 ended slightly earlier, in October, when
everything changed: the company failed to pay a
coupon on one of its bonds, effectively
defaulting on its debt obligations.
Brazilian financial regulations give breathing
space for companies in debt stress to negotiate
their obligations with creditors, and Unigel is
currently undergoing that
process. Earlier in April, it said
negotiations were progressing, without
disclosing more detail.
Jonathan Szwarc, head of Latin America credit
research at Debtwire, a data firm
specialized on leveraged capital markets, told
ICIS that Szlezynger would not easily give up
his controlling interest, but added the current
crisis would be difficult to circumvent.
“Unigel has had financial woes before and
overcame them, but this time is quite
different: once you fail to pay a coupon,
things can go down very quickly. You are not
meeting your debt obligations: a default,” said
Scwarz.
“The company has now an initial agreement with
some of its creditors, but it would need to
convince 50% plus one of them for it to be
effective: we don’t know if that is the case.
That’s where they are: seeking adherents to
that initial agreement to bring it before a
judge, who must approve the Extrajudicial
Reorganization Process.”
Will Szlezynger, after 58 successful years, be
forced by circumstances to call it a day?
Not that fast. Szwarc said that, in Unigel’s
case, sentimental issues could be as strong as
economic issues.
“If they are up against it, Szlezynger may
decide to reluctantly sell the company, but I
really think that is the last option he
contemplates,” he said.
“If Unigel was to be sold to a fund, I imagine
he would prefer a Brazilian fund, with whom he
would speak the same language business-wise,
than a foreign fund.”
As an example, the analyst mentioned
negotiations to raise $150m just in January, in
the midst of the debt restructuring
negotiations, through a group led by US
investment fund Pimco, which is also the
largest bondholder, according to reports at
Brazilian financially daily Valor at
the time.
That deal, which could have given Unigel
breathing space amid its restructuring, fell
through because it would have brought closer
what Szlezynger has fiercely opposed: the funds
taking away from the founding family a
controlling interest.
“The company’s assets are good. But Unigel was
very unlucky in terms of the petrochemicals and
fertilizers downcycles combined. You must keep
in mind that just in 2022 Unigel’s bonds were
trading well over 100% [generating returns],”
said Szwarc.
“The assets will continue operating in any
case: either under a new ownership structure,
in which the Szlezynger may still have a stake
even if it’s not the controlling stake, or
under a potential bankruptcy, when the assets
could be sold separately.”
The analyst concluded saying he did fail to
understand how Petrobras – the Lula-led
government, effectively – had not paid more
attention to Unigel, whose production of
styrenics as well as fertilizers Brazil badly
needs if the country is to reduce its
dependence on imports.
BRAZILIAN SAGAAmid all
Unigel things that occurred in 2023, one of the
most fascinating was its very public charge
against Petrobras in November, when the company
announced it would be shutting down one
fertilizer plant in Camacari, state of Bahia,
due to Petrobras’ “unbearable”
pricing policy for natural gas.
It was part of Unigel’s strategy, however, as
it became clear later in December when the two
firms signed a tolling
agreement for the fertilizers assets, in
what seemed to be Petrobras finally giving in
on natural gas pricing.
A Brazilian economic-political saga could not
just end there.
In March, Unigel announced it was halting its fertilizers
production, still mentioning high natural
gas prices, while Brazil’s Federal Audit (TCU
in its Portuguese acronym) raised concerns about
the tolling deal, which would have meant losses
for Petrobras.
As a state-owned company, Petrobras is audited
by TCU civil servants. And as a company, the
purpose of it is to make a profit: a sweet deal
for Unigel on gas would not be following that
logic, the auditors said.
Adding to it all, Petrobras said earlier in
April it was
re-entering the fertilizers sector by
re-starting a large fertilizer plant in
Araucaria, state of Parana, idled since 2020.
The energy major said fertilizers were now part
of its strategic plan to 2028, adding it would
therefore focus on “assets that already belong”
to it.
Unigel’s fertilizers plants at the centre of
the story, Camacari and Laranjeiras, state of
Sergipe, were a lease
from Petrobras signed in 2019, when the
prior Brazilian Administration wanted
Petrobras’ to focus on crude oil.
It was then when Unigel decided to go big on
fertilizers.
What does seasoned Szlezynger think about that
move now? He would not be too hard on himself
if he thinks it was a bad move indeed, which is
putting at risk his nearly six decades business
legacy.
Petrobras returning to the fertilizers sector
is, on the other hand, an expected move by
Lula’s cabinet, who in general wants to expand
the role of the state in the economy, or at
least in those sectors where the country’s
trade deficit is large, such as fertilizers.
The two plants leased to Unigel may end up,
therefore, being run by Petrobras again at some
point.
Unigel and its relentless founder will need to
fend for themselves amid the largest financial
crisis ever hitting the company.
At the end of the day, Lula’s key constituency
and the PT party’s cadres would have had a hard
time to digest the state was going to give
strong and direct support to a private company
owned by one of the richest citizens in the
land.
The Unigel saga continues and, whatever the
next act is, Szlezynger is still likely to have
a role in it.
Insight by Jonathan Lopez
Speciality Chemicals29-Apr-2024
SAO PAULO (ICIS)–Here are some of the stories
from ICIS Latin America for the week ended on
26 April.
NEWS
Mexico’s
potential ADDs on China plastics no panacea
amid wider stiff competition – Alpek
CEO
Mexico’s potential antidumping duties (ADDs) on
several China-produced plastics will not by
itself bring the Mexican market back to balance
as “stiff competition” is coming from many
other fronts as well, the CEO at chemicals
producer Alpek said on Wednesday.
INSIGHT: Latin
America’s nascent EV market increasingly a
Chinese affair
Latin America’s take-up of electric vehicles
(EVs) has started to gain momentum, said the
International Energy Agency (IEA) this week,
with Chinese producers drawing customers with
sharply lower prices than western, established
brands.
Mexico’s Alpek Q1
earnings fall but volumes up on shy demand
recovery
Alpek’s first-quarter earnings and sales fell
year on year but improved quarterly on a slight
demand recovery, particularly for polyesters,
the Mexican chemicals producer said on Tuesday.
PRICING
LatAm PP domestic
prices drop in Argentina on poor
demand
Domestic polypropylene (PP) prices dropped in
Argentina this week. Despite producer prices
being unchanged, local distributors have
lowered prices due to poor demand. Market
participants have reported a 40-60% drop in
sales in the past few weeks.
LatAm PE domestic
prices down in Argentina on sluggish
demand
After more than a year, domestic polyethylene
(PE) prices in Argentina were assessed lower
due to sluggish demand.
Argentina January
PE imports down 32% month on
month
Argentina polyethylene (PE) imports decreased
by 32% month on month in January, totaling
19,106 tonnes, according to the latest figures
from the ICIS Supply & Demand
database.
Petrochemicals29-Apr-2024
LONDON (ICIS)–Click
here to see the latest blog post on
Chemicals & The Economy by Paul Hodges,
which looks at how the New Normal is now
advancing very rapidly.
Editor’s note: This blog post is an opinion
piece. The views expressed are those of the
author and do not necessarily represent those
of ICIS. Paul Hodges is the chairman of
consultants New
Normal Consulting.
Speciality Chemicals29-Apr-2024
LONDON (ICIS)–Here are some of the top stories
from ICIS Europe for the week ended 26 April.
Europe TiO2 sees upside
for Q2 on margins and improved buying
Price rises are gaining traction for Europe
titanium dioxide (TiO2) contracts in Q2. This
is due to margin recovery needs, renewed buying
activity in Q1 and as uncertainty surrounding
the EU anti-dumping case against Chinese TiO2
imports looms large.
BASF
Q1 net income drops, maintains full-year
guidance
Lower pricing across most business divisions
drove a 12.4% drop in BASF’s first-quarter net
income year on year, with the chemicals major
maintaining full-year guidance as sector demand
shows early signs of recovery.
Europe April nylon 6
contract price rise on supply tightness,
upstream pressures
European April nylon 6 contract prices have
risen from March, pressured by tight supply in
parts of the market and further increases to
the feedstock costs.
Eurozone April private
sector activity momentum accelerates despite
weaker
manufacturing
Eurozone private sector activity continued to
thaw in April, moving further into growth
territory as a resurgent service sector offset
a manufacturing industry sinking deeper into
contraction.
IPEX:
Global spot index little changed as firmer
Asian prices offset falls in Europe, US
Gulf
The global spot ICIS Petrochemical Index (IPEX)
was little changed in the week, as slightly
firmer prices in northeast Asia offset lower
values in northwest Europe and the US Gulf.
Gas29-Apr-2024
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Here are the top stories from
ICIS News Asia and the Middle East for the week
ended 26 April 2024.
Thailand’s SCG Q1 net profit slumps 85%; eyes
better H2 conditions
By Nurluqman Suratman 26-Apr-24 12:45 SINGAPORE
(ICIS)–Siam Cement Group (SCG) posted an 85%
year-on-year decline in Q1 net profit on losses
from chemicals operations, but the Thai
conglomerate expects the segment’s earnings to
recover in H2 on improved olefins demand and
expected restart of its Vietnam petrochemical
complex.
China VAM exports jump; shipments to India
surge in Q2
By Hwee Hwee Tan 25-Apr-24 13:42 SINGAPORE
(ICIS)–China’s vinyl acetate monomer (VAM)
spot offers have tumbled, boosting buying
interest in its outbound cargoes, and lifting
its exports to India to a multi-month high into
the second quarter.
SE Asia PE May offers mostly rangebound; demand
still weak
By Izham Ahmad 24-Apr-24 14:09 SINGAPORE
(ICIS)–Initial spot import offers for May
shipments of polyethylene (PE) in southeast
Asia were announced mostly rangebound so far in
the week, while buying interest remained under
pressure near recent lows.
Saudi Aramco eyes stake in Hengli
Petrochemical; prowls for more China
investments
By Fanny Zhang 23-Apr-24 14:13 SINGAPORE
(ICIS)–Saudi Aramco continues its quest for
downstream petrochemical investments in the
world’s second-biggest economy, adding Hengli
Petrochemical in a list of target companies in
which the global energy giant intends to
acquire a strategic stake.
PODCAST: Production constraints keep Asian BD
spot trades buoyant in Q1, demand outlook
mixed
By Damini Dabholkar 22-Apr-24 17:35 SINGAPORE
(ICIS)–Persistent production constraints have
driven Asia’s spot prices for butadiene (BD) to
near two-year-high levels, but how the rally
goes from here may hinge on downstream demand
conditions.
CHINAPLAS ’24: PODCAST: China PP exports
strong, imports weak in Q1
By Sijia Li 22-Apr-24 16:23 SINGAPORE
(ICIS)–ICIS analyst Sijia Li and senior
industry analyst Joanne Wang discuss
developments in China’s polyolefins market.
Speciality Chemicals26-Apr-2024
HOUSTON (ICIS)–Global shipping container rates
are starting to moderate, the Panama Canal
expects to increase transits in May, and liquid
chemical tanker spot rates are mixed,
highlighting this week’s logistics roundup.
CONTAINER RATES
Global shipping container rates are plateauing
as shipowners have implemented blank sailings
to control capacity and as some carriers have
announced general rate increases (GRIs).
Freight forwarder Flexport said in an update on
25 April that GRIs announced for ex-Asia
westbound routes are expected to stick amid
high utilization from carriers.
Flexport noted three factors that supported the
increases – a slight increase in demand because
of the May labor holiday in China; reduced
capacity from the increase in blank sailings;
and increased congestion at ports and equipment
challenges from certain carriers.
Participants in the US polyethylene
terephthalate (PET) told ICIS they are seeing
higher freight costs as shipping in the Red Sea
and now the Strait of Hormuz continues to be
disrupted.
Rate increases have also been announced for
cargo heading to the Middle East region.
Global container shipping major Mediterranean
Shipping Company (MSC) announced $200/TEU
(20-foot equivalent unit) effective 17 May for
all cargo leaving the US and Puerto Rico going
to the Middle East.
Global container rates from supply chain
advisors Drewry were flat this week, as shown
in the following chart.
Rates from North China to the US Gulf also held
steady, although at levels higher than were
seen in December before the attacks on
commercial vessels in the Red Sea, as shown in
this chart from ocean and freight rate
analytics firm Xeneta.
Container ships and costs for shipping
containers are relevant to the chemical
industry because while most chemicals are
liquids and are shipped in tankers, container
ships transport polymers, such as polyethylene
(PE) and polypropylene (PP), which are shipped
in pellets.
They also transport liquid chemicals in
isotanks.
LIQUID CHEM TANKERS
US chemical tanker freight rates assessed by
ICIS were mixed this week with rates
rising for parcels from the US Gulf (USG) to
Brazil and India. However, rates from the USG
to ARA decreased and all other trade lanes held
steady.
From the USG to Brazil, this trade lane has had
limited availability for H1 May loading.
However, mid and H2 May have showed a few more
options with an outsider on berth currently to
South America. This could place downward
pressure on this route.
Although COA nominations are still up in the
air, a few regular owners hope to have more
space and a broker says that time will tell
when this space fills up.
From the USG to Asia, regular players have said
they are full on most of their positions
through this time, which has placed some upward
pressure on smaller parcels as it has become
harder to find space for them.
Currently, the USG to Asia market appears to be
in a fragile balance between the interest in
larger slugs, and the growing number of players
looking for stainless steel vessels in the USG
for May, according to a broker.
BALTIMORE BRIDGE
The Unified Command (UC) announced the opening
of a new channel at the Port of Baltimore that
has allowed ships trapped inside the port to
leave.
The Fort McHenry Limited Access Channel, which
runs the length of the northeast side of the
federal channel, provides additional access to
commercially essential traffic.
The limited access deep draft channel has a
controlling depth of a minimum of 35 feet, a
300-foot horizontal clearance, and a vertical
clearance of 214 feet.
Starting Monday, April 29, operations to remove
the Dali will require suspension of transits
through the Fort McHenry Limited Access
Channel.
Once deemed safe, the channel will reopen for
commercial traffic.
PANAMA CANAL
The Panama Canal Authority (PCA) will increase
the number of slots available for Panamax
vessels to transit the waterway beginning 16
May and will add another slot for Neopanamax
vessels on 1 June based on the present and
projected water levels in Gatun Lake.
The PCA began limiting the number of transits
in August 2023 because of low water levels in
Gatun Lake brought on by a severe drought that
made 2023 the second driest year on record for
the Panama Canal watershed catchment area.
Wait times for non-booked vessels ready for
transit edged lower for northbound vessels and
rose for southbound vessels this week,
according to the Panama Canal Authority
(PCA) vessel
tracker and as shown in the following
image.
Wait times a week ago were 3.0 days for
northbound traffic and 2.9 for southbound
traffic.
The Panama Canal Authority (PCA) said current
forecasts indicate that steady rainfall will
arrive later this month and continue during the
rainy season, which would allow the PCA to
gradually ease transit restrictions and traffic
could return to normal by 2025.
Please see the
Logistics: Impact on chemicals and energy topic
page
With additional reporting by Melissa
Wheeler and Kevin Callahan
Contact us
Partnering with ICIS unlocks a vision of a future you can trust and achieve. We leverage our unrivalled network of industry experts to deliver a comprehensive market view based on independent and reliable data, insight and analytics.
Contact us to learn how we can support you as you transact today and plan for tomorrow.