Asia top stories – weekly summary

SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Here are the top stories from ICIS News Asia and the Middle East for the week ended 24 April 2020.

INSIGHT: Asia faces largely disrupted plastics demand amid coronavirus pandemic
Lockdowns. Pandemic. Coronavirus.
These three words, commonplace as they are, often trigger anxiety in many of us as the novel coronavirus has robbed over a hundred thousand lives and confirmed cases topped 2m worldwide.

China PTA supply to continue growing on good margins despite weak prices
China’s domestic supply of purified terephthalic acid (PTA) may continue growing on the back of good margins amid depressed crude values despite continued weakness in spot market prices, which hit a record low on 22 April.

Asia petchem shares mostly higher amid crude rebound
Asian petrochemical shares were mostly higher on Thursday, tracking the overnight rally on Wall Street which also fueled the rebound in oil prices.

China BDO slumps on high stocks, weak demand; plant run rates to stay low
China’s butanediol (BDO) prices have slumped in April on further declines in downstream demand and lingering high inventories.

Asia petrochemical markets wary of US crude price plunge below zero
Asia’s petrochemical markets are wary of the historic plunge in US crude futures below zero, but reaction so far is relatively mild as players may have conceded that low oil prices amid shrinking demand are the new reality in a pandemic-induced recession.

US WTI crude falls to lowest level in 21 years amid demand, storage concerns
Crude prices have fallen Monday amid growing concerns over the collapse in demand and limits to available storage capacity.

Asia petrochemical shares mixed in cautious trade; US crude slumps $3/bbl
Shares of petrochemical firms in Asia were mixed on Monday amid cautious trading, with gains in some tempered by sharp falls in US crude due to a demand collapse induced by the coronavirus pandemic.

Asia IPA hits 9-year high, up 92% since Jan – demand to remain firm
Asia’s isopropanol (IPA) hit a record nine-year high on 17 April 2020 as the market continued its unabated demand for the product.