Europe top stories: weekly summary

LONDON (ICIS)–Here are some of the top stories from ICIS Europe for the week ended 4 June.

Europe benzene market enjoys healthy demand as buying activity picks up
The €17/tonne decrease in the Europe June benzene contract price met expectations of most market participants, sources said on Friday.

US PPG withdraws acquisition proposal for Netherlands’ AkzoNobel
PPG has withdrawn its proposal to combine with AkzoNobel and will not pursue a public offer for all issued and outstanding shares of the Dutch firm, the US paints and coatings producer announced on Thursday.

HuntsmanClariant’s expected $400m/year synergies to rise as talks continue – CFO
The merger talks between US polyurethanes producer Huntsman and Clariant leave room to generate efficiencies beyond the the $400m/year initially announced once the two teams “sit together”, according to the CFO at the Swiss chemical major.

Dutch court rejects AkzoNobel’s shareholder request to remove chairman
Dutch paints and coatings major AkzoNobel’s shareholder Elliot Advisors’ appeal to a Dutch court calling for an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to remove the company’s chairman was rejected late on Monday, striking a further blow to US coatings firm PPG’s hopes of acquiring its Netherlands-based rival.

Europe propylene June contract fully confirmed at €840/tonne
The European propylene contract reference price has been established at €840/tonne, down by €40/tonne from May, several contract participants said on Tuesday.

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