Russian homopolymer PP March prices rise on strong demand, dwindling supply

MOSCOW (MRC)–Stronger demand in the Russian polypropylene (PP) market since early March combined with dwindling supply has led to some grades increasing by Rb5,000-7,000/tonne, according to the ICIS-MRC Price Report.

The need for homopolymer PP began to grow in the last days of February on seasonal factors, with demand also pressured by upcoming restrictions on trucking and the shutdown of facilities in Tobolsk.

As a result, prices grew every week at some sellers and by the end of the month increased on average by Rb2,000/tonne ($26/tonne)

Homopolymer PP raffia was in great demand during the whole March and some buyers reported a slight lack of material supply in the market. Some sellers were in no hurry to sell their stocks.

According to unofficial information, the largest polypropylene producer in Russia, SIBUR Tobolsk, with an annual capacity of 500,000 tonnes/year, stopped its capacity for scheduled and preventive repairs from 11 March. The outage will last for 45 days.

The supply of cheap homopolymer PP raffia from Turkmenistan decreased significantly in March. In February imports amounted to around 2,000 tonnes, while in March it fell to 500 tonnes.

In the first week of March, homopolymer PP raffia in the spot market was sold in the range of Rb81,000-83,000/tonne CPT (carriage paid to) Moscow, including VAT, while by the end of the month it rose to Rb86,000-90,000/tonne.

Injection moulding copolymers of propylene did not rise in price, with a few exceptions. In some cases, prices were already comparable to homopolymer PP, while Russian manufacturers have no plans to increase them in April.

($1 = Rb77.89)

MRC, a partner of ICIS, produces polymers news and pricing reports from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.