Asia top stories – weekly summary
ICIS Editorial
18-Feb-2019
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Here are the top stories from ICIS News Asia and the Middle East for the week ended 15 February.
NE Asia ethylene hits 18-week high, post
holiday re-stocking continues
Northeast Asia ethylene import prices surged to
an 18-week high, lifted by post-holiday
re-stocking in China and tighter regional
supply.
Singapore economy to slow further in 2019 after
expanding 3.2% last year
Singapore’s economy is expected to cool further
in 2019, with marked decelerations in its
manufacturing sector and petrochemical exports
pointing to a global economic slowdown.
Southeast Asia BG market under pressure on
ample supply
Southeast Asia’s butyl glycol (BG) spot prices
will likely remain under pressure from ample
supply in the near term.
Asia PBT import prices halt falls; makers face
thinning margins
Spot import prices of polybutylene
terephthalate (PBT) in Asia are expected to be
stable to soft in the second half of February.
Asia isomer-grade xylene rises 2.4% on bullish
sentiment
Asia’s isomer grade xylenes (IX) prices
rebounded 2.4% on Thursday, after a minor
correction in the previous day, on bullish
sentiment due to rising crude oil values and
good performance in other markets.
China PMDI prices poised to gain on active
re-stocking
Spot prices of Polymeric methylene diphenyl
diisocyanate (PMDI) in the Chinese import
market are set to remain stable-to-firm going
into the second half of February.
SE Asia PP may find support from supply
tightness; Feb seen mostly stable
The southeast Asia polypropylene (PP) prices
market may draw some support from regional
supply tightness, though most market players
expect stability to remain for most of
February.
Asia TDI spot poised to fall as oversupply
outstrips demand
Spot prices for toluene diisocyanate (TDI) in
Asia are poised to register declines in the
week ending 13 February, tracking softer
indications for February-loading material,
market sources said on Wednesday.
Asian PX prices to firm on receding supply;
backwardation in sight
Asian paraxylene (PX) prices will be buttressed
by healthy market fundamentals going forward,
as the pool of supply is seen decreasing as a
legion of PX units will undergo maintenance
works.
China Jan gasoline import loss widens;
arbitrage window stays shut
Theoretical margins for gasoline imports in
China were at minus yuan (CNY) 210.4/tonne
($31/tonne) in January, compared with minus
CNY33.8/tonne in December 2018, ICIS data
showed.
Asia epoxy resin export offers up on upstream
gains; but demand hazy
Export offers for northeast Asia-origin epoxy
resin cargoes are edging up alongside upstream
gains, but upside potential may be capped if
downstream demand does not recover
sufficiently.
Asia BD may rebound near term on China demand
post-holiday
Asia’s butadiene (BD) spot prices may rebound
soon because of heightened buying interest from
China post-holiday.
NE Asia C3 markets may take time to warm up
post-holidays
Spot propylene markets in northeast Asia are
expected to be largely quiet post-Lunar New
Year holidays in major regional markets.
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