Europe top stories: weekly summary

LONDON (ICIS)–Here are some of the top stories from ICIS Europe for the week ended 17 September.

INSIGHT: Europe chems ponder Harvey impact but German trains a bigger headache
Some European sources have noted a degree of disruption in their markets caused by Hurricane Harvey in the US chemicals hub of Texas and Louisiana, but the region’s industry is growing more concerned by the day about a less dramatic logistical issue, Germany’s rail transport problems.

African PP prices mostly stable but sellers remain bullish
African polypropylene (PP) prices have mostly held stable this week but sellers anticipate further opportunities for hikes in coming weeks, according to sources.

US should reconsider Gulf infrastructure, crude oil demand revised up for 2017 – IEA
Crude oil demand growth rose by 2.4% in the second quarter, year on year, to 2.3m bbl/day as economic activity in developed countries remained strong, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Wednesday.

Dutch AkzoNobel moves on from PPG bid, focuses on 2020 targets – CEO
AkzoNobel spent a great deal of time thinking about the acquisition bid by US’ PPG in the first half of the year but the company has moved on and is concentrated on achieving its 2020 financial targets, the new CEO of the Dutch paints and coatings major said this week.

INTERACTIVE: OPEC crude output drops for first time in months
OPEC crude oil output dropped in August, the cartel said on Tuesday, for the first time in several months, while projected global economic growth for the year was revised up.

Europe naphtha-based cracker margins up, LPG margins fall
European naphtha based cracker margins have risen week on week, but margins based on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) feedstock have fallen, according to ICIS margin analysis on Monday.

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