APLA ’17: Brazil PVC market hints at improvement

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (ICIS)–Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) business in the construction sector in Brazil is showing signs of improvement, a source said on Monday at an industry event.

Construction in Brazil is hinting at recovery, but the inventory of houses is still high, the source said on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the Latin American Petrochemical Association (APLA).

Following Brazil’s recession of 2016, construction, although gradually improving, has performed below expectations in 2017.

However, more people are talking about buying houses after the market reached bottom, compared with 2016 when housing projects were not even a matter of discussion. Expectations for the near future have turned positive, the source said.

Meanwhile, with the commodity resin used in construction applications not a major focus of interest during challenging times, PVC market participants in Brazil turned to business with other products, such as special formulations for cables and other specialties, the source said.

The APLA annual meeting runs through Tuesday.