US chems shares close higher amid China tariff deal

HOUSTON (ICIS)–Several shares of chemical companies closed sharply higher on Monday after the US and China agreed to sharply reduce their tariffs for 90 days.

The following table shows the major indices followed by ICIS.

Index	12-May	Change	%
Dow Jones Industrial Average	42,410.10	1,160.72	2.81%
S&P 500	5,844.19	184.28	3.26%
Dow Jones US Chemicals Index	822.31	17.02	2.11%
S&P 500 Chemicals Industry Index	877.99	15.41	1.79%

The lower rates take effect on 14 May.

For the US, it will lower its 2025 tariffs on Chinese imports to 30% from 145%. The 30% tariff is made up of the 20% fentanyl tariffs that the US adopted earlier in 2025 as well as the 10% baseline tariff that the US has imposed on most of the world.

For China, it will cut its 2025 tariffs on US imports to 10% from 125%. The 10% tariff matches the baseline rate that the US has imposed on Chinese imports. China also suspended the non-tariff measures that it has taken since 2 April. The agreement does not mention the tariffs that China had imposed in February on a limited number of US imports, including liquefied natural gas (LNG). Nor does the agreement mention the restrictions on antimony and other minerals that China announced in December 2024 as well as those on bismuth and other minerals announced in February 2025.

Monday’s pause does not change the tariffs that the two countries adopted during the first term of US President Donald Trump.

Still, the agreement removes a substantial amount of tariffs, which should stimulate some trade. Fitch Ratings estimates that the effective US tariff rate fell to 13.1% from 22.8%.

The following table shows the performance of the US-listed shares followed by ICIS.

Name	$ Current Price	$ Change	% Change
AdvanSix	24.21	1.10	4.76%
Avient	39.01	2.21	6.01%
Axalta Coating Systems	32.7	1.60	5.14%
Braskem	3.79	0.17	4.70%
Chemours	11.99	0.93	8.41%
Celanese	54.53	3.32	6.48%
DuPont	71.27	4.50	6.74%
Dow	30.98	1.50	5.09%
Eastman	82.77	5.27	6.80%
HB Fuller	57.03	2.50	4.58%
Huntsman	12.93	0.88	7.30%
Kronos Worldwide	7.55	0.27	3.71%
LyondellBasell	60.68	3.75	6.59%
Methanex	34.48	2.04	6.29%
NewMarket	636.65	2.17	0.34%
Ingevity	43.04	2.57	6.35%
Olin	22.86	1.53	7.17%
PPG	114.21	5.45	5.01%
RPM International	114.27	3.74	3.38%
Stepan	55.86	1.96	3.64%
Sherwin-Williams	357.15	5.29	1.50%
Tronox	5.77	0.52	9.90%
Trinseo	2.54	0.02	0.79%
Westlake	85.66	5.66	7.07%