Americas top stories: weekly summary

HOUSTON (ICIS)–Here are the top stories from ICIS News from the week ended 3 March 2017:

US Feb styrene contracts settle at big increases
US styrene producers have settled February contracts at an increase of 10 cents/lb ($220/tonne) from the previous month, while spot prices remained unchanged at very high levels, market participants said.

US spot benzene lower amid downstream outages
US benzene spot prices were assessed lower, continuing a trend which began in mid-February as downstream outages pressure the market.

US spot BD retreats after three-month uptrend
US butadiene (BD) spot prices slipped for the first time in three months on the back of weakening fundamentals in Asia, the lower-than-nominated settlement of US March contracts, as well as bearish sentiment amid expectations of softening demand and improving supply.

US phenol spot prices fall on weaker feedstocks
US phenol spot prices were assessed lower, following weaker upstream benzene values.

US March acrylates talks underway, may settle early
US March acrylic acid and acrylates esters free-market contract-price talks were already well underway during the first week of the month, sources said, and they are likely to settle more quickly than usual.

INSIGHT: US petchem logistics constraints may cost billions
Logistical constraints could cost companies in the US nearly $75bn if they are not addressed in time for upcoming wave of new petrochemical plants, PwC said in a report.

INSIGHT: Trump speech to Congress short on specifics but ignites markets
US President Donald Trump’s first speech to the joint session of Congress revealed little detail to his platform policy issues, but sparked a big rally in the US equity market on continued hopes for business friendly changes along with a change in tone directed towards compromise.

US March BD rises on constrained availability
Ongoing tightness in US supply of butadiene (BD) has led to another significant increase in contracts for March, putting prices at their highest levels in nearly five years.

US March benzene falls amid downstream outages
US March benzene contract prices settled at $3.25-3.27/gal, down 7 cents/gal from the prior month, market sources confirmed.

US Feb ethylene contracts settle up 2.25 cents/lb
US ethylene contracts for February have settled for most participants at an increase of 2.25 cents/lb, according to sources, although the agreement is not market-wide.

OxyChem, Mexichem start up JV cracker in Texas
Occidental Chemical (OxyChem) and Mexichem’s new cracker in Ingleside, Texas, has begun operations on schedule and is currently in a production stabilisation phase, the two companies’ 50:50 joint venture firm Ingleside Ethylene announced.