Asia top stories – weekly summary

SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Here are the top stories from ICIS News Asia and the Middle East for the week ended 16 July 2021.

VIDEO: China crude imports to slow down in Q3; improve in Q4
Watch analyst Jean Zou discuss the outlook on China’s crude imports for the rest of 2021.

PODCAST: Asia, China’s styrene markets could stay in a short-term limbo
Both Asia’s and China’s styrene price movements have been affected by cost pressure stemming from firmer upstream benzene and ethylene performance, together with a seasonal lull in China’s downstream domestic demand and squeezed styrenics production spreads.

OUTLOOK: Asia EVA braces for ample supply, dwindling demand in H2
New capacity in China and downbeat demand projection in the key downstream photovoltaic (PV) sector may continue to weigh on Asia’s ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) market in the second half of 2021.

Pandemic accelerates global drive for renewable solutions – Arkema exec
The coronavirus pandemic has opened opportunities for chemical companies to drive new sustainability solutions in their businesses, a senior executive of French specialty materials manufacturer Arkema said.

OUTLOOK: Lacklustre Asia synthetic rubbers demand may temper upstream Asian import trades for various synthetic rubber materials, including styrene butadiene rubber (SBR), polybutadiene rubber (PBR), and acrylonitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), have gained ground, as sellers hike offers to recoup costs and margins.